


Challenger

by darkfire1220



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-13 03:27:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 99,304
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28896606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkfire1220/pseuds/darkfire1220
Summary: Ash sets off on his journey to become a Pokemon Master with his starter Charmander and a mischievous Pichu, ready and determined to battle their way to the top. But there are many dark secrets residing in the shadows, and some of them are deadly. Ash and his team must grow strong to survive, because there's no guarantee they'll make it through the challenges ahead.Cross-posted on ffnet.
Comments: 78
Kudos: 137





	1. The First Step

_Chapter One: The First Step_

In the quaint settlement of Pallet Town, morning sunlight filtered into a small bedroom. In that room, a boy was awake and getting ready for quite possibly the most important day of his short life. Ash Ketchum was about to leave home and begin his travels as a Pokemon trainer.

"Ash! Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, just a second!" Ash called back to answer his mother.

Ash was ten years old. Well, a little older than that. Rather, it had been six months since he'd turned ten, but he and the rest of his class had had to postpone their starting date as trainers. Usually, trainers set off on their journeys once they reached their first decade, but circumstances in the Indigo League had forced them to stagger that date. For the last ten years or so, Indigo had only held its Pokemon League every other year because the region had just gotten out of a major world war.

For nearly fifteen years, the region of Orre had been under the influence of a dangerous rogue military organization called Cipher, who had weaponized Pokemon with their "Shadow" technology. Since Orre was hardly an organized region in the first place, Cipher took power easily with their Shadow Pokemon and when they turned their eyes to the rest of the world, the other regions could no longer ignore them.

What followed was the most brutal war in the history of the Leagues. Tens of thousands of people and Pokemon had died in combat, creating a generation gap so massive that most of the regions now consisted of children and older individuals. Most of the average adult trainers had fallen in the violent battles. Kanto and Johto suffered severe casualties, with Hoenn not far behind. The regions of Fiore and Almia had also participated, and the damage they suffered was so great that they secluded themselves, barring normal trainers from their borders for the sake of protecting their people.

Eventually, Cipher was only destroyed because an incredibly skilled agent from one of its own branch organizations went rogue. That young trainer swept through the ranks of Cipher with a unique capture device and a female partner that could identify the previously unrecognizable Shadow Pokemon. They had infiltrated right into Cipher's core and managed to crush their leader. The regions had gotten lucky.

With Cipher destroyed, the world settled back down, but it took a decade for things to even remotely resemble normalcy as it had before the war. That was why Indigo had added on to the amount of time trainers typically had to get stronger before the League Tournament began. They needed not only stronger trainers, but as many new trainers as possible to fill the huge generation gap. The first tournament that took place immediately after the war consisted of just thirty-two individuals. It was only over the last year or so that they had returned to yearly tournaments.

But new trainers had to wait until the League officially began the competitive season before setting out, which was the reason for Ash's six month delay. Now that Spring had come along, aligning with the start of the new Indigo Tournament season, he could finally leave to begin his journey.

He was just glad that he had passed Professor Oak's exams with flying colors. Oak only accepted three new trainers every six months. If Ash hadn't made the top three scores, he would have been forced to wait until the Fall to start his travels. That would leave him with six months to train for the massive Indigo Tournament, which wasn't nearly enough time to get anywhere that mattered.

Not to mention that Gary would have mocked him until the day he died.

The door to his bedroom opened to reveal his mother, Delia Ketchum. She had a bright smile on her face as always and leaned against the doorway to watch him. "Do you have everything you need?"

"I think so," Ash replied. "All the supplies we got at the store last week are already in my bag. I think the only things I'm missing are Professor Oak's gear and a Pokemon."

"Have you decided which one you want?"

He grinned widely. "Oh yeah."

He'd been thinking about this for years—ever since he decided to be a trainer, actually. It had been incredibly hard to choose just one of the three starters Oak offered to young trainers because they were so varied. Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle. All three of the starters were rare and highly prized Pokemon.

Bulbasaur was a hardy little grass type with great versatility. It was specialized for immobilizing opponents with various spores and toxins, which made it invaluable for battles and captures. Bulbasaur could trap a wide variety of wild Pokemon and make them an incredibly easy catch—great for any trainer. Both of its evolved forms only improved on these abilities, and Venusaur were regarded as one of the most powerful grass species in Kanto.

Squirtle was the most defensive option of the trio. Its evolutionary line had developed an incredibly hard shell that was nigh impenetrable from most attacks. Along with its sturdy defenses, Squirtle could pack a punch with high-pressure water blasts, and its hard skull and powerful jaws gave it options to work with close-up. Blastoise was the prize of that evolutionary line; anything that could punch through solid steel plates with hydro cannons was something to be greatly feared in combat.

But Ash wanted neither Bulbasaur or Squirtle. Besides, Gary had basically laid claim to Squirtle already and Ash decided he wanted a different Pokemon than him.

Charmander, the fire type, was Ash's desired partner. Its breed was primed for attack power and speed, two attributes that could be put to great use in battle. Charmander and its evolutionary line could slash enemies with sharp claws and then blast them with intense flames. Even against a Pokemon with a type advantage, their onslaught could usually pull them through to victory. Charmeleon took Charmander's abilities and greatly improved them with enhanced speed and firepower.

But Ash sorely wanted a Charizard. Infamous for their fiery personalities and roaring popularity on the battlefield, the pseudo-dragons were true monsters when properly trained. Even Lance, the Champion of Indigo, had a Charizard at his disposal. The beast of a fire-type was arguably his second most powerful Pokemon despite not being a dragon type in the first place. Ash had watched a battle between Lance's Charizard and Elite Four Bruno's Machamp on TV once. His decision on a starter had been cemented the second that Charizard used a move called Blast Burn to effectively demolish the field.

So he was getting a Charmander.

Delia checked her watch and smiled. "There's no rush, Ash. You've still got an hour before you have to be at the Professor's lab. Come on downstairs and have some breakfast."

Ash shouldered his bag and grinned at the prospect of starting the day with his mother's delicious cooking. "Alright!"

* * *

While the Ketchums ate breakfast together for the last time until Ash returned, Delia switched on the TV to see what the latest news was. It was always important these days to stay on top of the current events around the world.

_"—and there has recently been a swarm of Tailow sighted near Fuchsia City, likely on their migration pattern further south to Hoenn. Any trainers seeking to catch one, best hurry! Researchers expect the flocks to have passed through Kanto in the next two weeks. That's it for Pokemon News today. Expect the next update tomorrow, same time, same channel!"_

Delia sipped from her glass of tea and looked back to her son. "Make sure you keep up with the news while you're out traveling, okay, Ash? You never know when an exotic Pokemon species might be moving into the area you're in."

"I'll remember," Ash replied, then shoveled down the last of his scrambled eggs. He would definitely miss his mother's incredible food. After swallowing the remnants of breakfast, he looked at his mom. "I'm pretty sure the Pokedex has a feature that'll let me stay on top of news like that."

It was about time for him to leave. Before he could grab his bag, however, the TV came through with a breaking news story. Ash and his mother turned their eyes to the screen as a serious reporter appeared.

_"A group of criminals have been stealing Pokemon from trainers around Viridian City. Recent reports suggest that the group is affiliated with Team Rocket, a criminal syndicate operating throughout the Kanto Region and parts of Johto. Last night, the Pokemon Center in Viridian was raided by the thieves and several Pokemon were stolen. As a result, the League has ordered Gym Leader Giovanni to take action. All trainers are warned to avoid all contact with the Rockets and report any suspicious activity."_

Ash whistled. "That sounds pretty serious if Giovanni has to step in. He's the strongest Gym Leader in Kanto."

"Yes. Yes, he is," Delia muttered. She had a frown on her face.

Ash wondered on her disturbed expression, but shrugged and shouldered his bag. "Well, I'm heading off."

Delia immediately put a smile on her face and stood up. "I'll go with you to the lab. I have to start work in an hour anyways."

So the pair of them left the house together, discussing Ash's upcoming journey all the while.

* * *

They arrived at the lab shortly. Waiting for them were the other two children that had graduated Professor Oak's trainer class with Ash—Gary and Leaf. Ash grinned upon seeing them.

"What took you so long, Ashy-boy?" Gary smirked. "I was afraid you weren't going to show up!"

"And miss the chance to beat you down in a battle? There's no way I'd miss that."

"Uh-huh. I'm sure," the taller boy snickered. He glanced to Ash's mother and nodded. "Morning, Ms. Ketchum."

Delia smiled. "Good morning, Gary. And you too, Leaf. Excited?"

Leaf smiled fiercely. "As if I couldn't be! I can't wait to get my Bulbasaur!"

"You only picked that because it's got an advantage over Squirtle," Gary jabbed. "Can't say I blame you, though. You'll need a type advantage to beat me!"

The girl gave him a sly look. "Oh really? Who made the highest battle simulation scores again?"

Gary colored a bit and looked away, muttering under his breath. "…just because that stupid Shellder got a lucky hit off on Tangela…"

"It's not luck if that Shellder tanked two super-effective hits and then busted you with Aurora Beam."

"Shut up!" Gary scowled.

"Now, now, that's enough."

The door to the lab opened up and revealed Professor Oak, who had apparently heard the exchange from inside. He wiped some of the exhaustion from his eyes, causing Ash to smirk. Oak practically lived in the lab and it was clear that he'd spent another sleepless night up researching.

Oak stifled a yawn and nodded to Ash's mother. "Good morning, Delia. Come to check on the love birds?"

"You and I both know they're anything but right now, Professor!" Delia laughed. "I'll get through to them eventually, though. Skarmory and Fearow won't have any idea what hit them!"

"I'll leave that pair in your capable hands, then," Oak grunted. "Now, you three. I assume you're all prepared to receive your starter Pokemon?"

Gary grinned widely. "Is that even a question, gramps? Course' we're ready!"

The older man smiled at his grandson's energy and gestured into the lab. "Well, come on, then. Let's not keep your Pokemon waiting. That Bulbasaur looked like it wanted to Vine Whip me last night. It wants to leave the lab _now_."

He led them inside and spoke to them on the way to the lab's main area. "As the three of you know, I'm conducting research on Pokemon. In return for me granting each of you a very rare Pokemon, I'm going to provide you with a Pokedex to gather information on Pokemon in the field. It comes with a database on Pokemon around the world and I expect you all to put it to good use."

Gary scoffed. "Aren't those three starters for like a third of the trainers in Kanto? They aren't spectacularly rare, gramps."

"These three _are_ rare. Not because of the species, but because of their moves," Oak informed him. "I wanted to keep this as a surprise until today. The three starters you are about to receive each have unique moves that have been passed on to them from their parents, which are normally exceedingly difficult for them to learn naturally. You have Ms. Delia to thank for that. She took time out of her busy schedule here at the lab to make this possible."

Ash grinned at his mother for the pleasant surprise. "Is that why you came home late for so long?"

Delia laughed. "It is! I wanted the best for my boy and his friends!"

"Thank you so much, Ms. Ketchum!" Leaf practically squealed.

Gary was grinning so much that Ash though his face would split in half. "Aww, yeah! Ms. Ketchum, you're awesome! Thanks a million!"

"You are both most certainly welcome!"

Oak chuckled at their excitement. "Alright, now let's introduce the lot of you to your Pokemon, shall we?"

He walked over to a round table where three Poke Balls lay alongside uniquely colored Pokedexes. The three kids had been given the option of customizing their own devices, although it was little more than picking their favorite color out. Ash's was a dark red, Gary's was blue, and Leaf's was green.

"Right, I believe you've all already selected the Pokemon you want, right? It seemed as though it was decided a while back. Leaf, you wanted Bulbasaur, correct? Ash wanted Charmander, and Gary Squirtle? Did I get that right?"

"Yes sir!"

"Good. Now then, ladies first. This is Bulbasaur."

Oak took the Poke Ball next to the green Pokedex and tapped the release button, sending out the Pokemon inside. A short, green Pokemon with four stubby legs and a plant bulb on its back materialized following a brief flash of light. The Bulbasaur glanced around curiously at its surroundings. It eventually spotted the Professor and gave him a dirty look.

"Easy, Bulbasaur. Your trainer is here, see?"

The little grass-type looked at Leaf when Oak pointed and seemed to consider his words for a second. It nodded a second later, apparently satisfied with the girl.

Leaf knelt down so she was at Bulbasaur's level and held her hand out for the Pokemon to scan. She politely waited as Bulbasaur ran its two vines over her fingers. When the grass type finished and looked up at her, she smiled and spoke quietly so as not to startle it. "Hi there, Bulbasaur. I'm Leaf. It's nice to meet you! Would you like to travel with me?"

Bulbasaur's eyes lit up and it nodded vigorously. Oak laughed at its determined reaction. "He just wants to get out of my lab. I think he feels cooped up."

The grass-type gave the Professor another dirty look and made a light growl. Oak just chuckled at the irritated little creature and moved to pick up Ash's Poke Ball. "Right, since Ash's mother was the one who bred these three, his Charmander is next."

Oak tapped the release on the new Poke Ball and after the light faded, a small, bipedal lizard with orange scales and a small flame on the tip of its tail stood in front of them. Charmander yawned, showing off its white fangs, and then observed the group with big, onyx colored eyes.

It glanced at Oak questioningly. The Professor gestured to Ash. "Your trainer has arrived, Charmander. Go on, say hello."

Charmander turned back around to look at Ash. It tilted its head curiously and made a little trilling nose in the back of its throat.

Ash also knelt in front of the short Pokemon and held his hand out. "Hey, Charmander. My name's Ash. I want to become the world's greatest Pokemon Master. Would you like to help out? I promise I'll make you as strong as you can be!"

The lizard perked up at that and its tail flame flared a bit. Like most Pokemon, Charmander held a nearly insatiable desire to become strong. This boy wanted to become the best in the world, and so did Charmander. That sounded great to the little fire-type.

Charmander offered a toothy grin and swished its tail excitedly. Ash laughed. "We'll get along great."

"I'm sure you two will," Oak agreed. He picked up the last Poke Ball from the table. "Gary, this is your Squirtle."

The small Pokemon that appeared was a blue turtle with an orange and yellow shell and a curly tail. It looked up at the group of kids and adults and smirked.

Gary didn't kneel in front of the turtle and just grinned. "I like the attitude, Squirtle. You think you've got what it takes to keep up with the greatest Pokemon trainer of all time?"

Squirtle's grin widened and it nodded eagerly. Gary crossed his arms. "Good, then let's team up and open up a can of whoop ass on the whole Indigo League!"

"Language, young man," Oak snapped, though he didn't get particularly angry. The Professor handed out each of the three kids their Pokedexes and helped them with switching the devices on. "Now, why don't you three use those on your new partners? It'll act as a tutorial of sorts and give you a bit of information about your Pokemon."

The three nodded and held up their Pokedex's cameras to their new Pokemon so as to scan them. Before long, they each beeped and began to recite information in a mechanical, feminine voice.

_Bulbasaur, the Seed Pokemon. It is born with a large seed on its back to accumulate nourishment for growth. Energy is also stored in the bulb that can be utilized in battle. Bulbasaur often take frequent naps in bright sunlight shortly before evolution._

_This Bulbasaur is male and knows the moves: Vine Whip, Tackle, Power Whip, and Grassy Terrain. Its ability is Overgrow, which boosts its grass-type moves when it is low on health._

Leaf grinned. "Wow, Bulbasaur! You've got some moves, huh?"

Bulbasaur puffed up and seemed to be thoroughly proud of Leaf's assessment.

_Charmander, the Lizard Pokemon. The flame on its tail indicates Charmander's health. If it's healthy, the flame will burn brightly. During battle, it attacks with sharp claws and fangs before spitting fire at opponents._

_This Charmander is male and knows the moves: Ember, Scratch, Dragon Dance, and Dragon Rush. Its ability is Blaze, which boosts its fire-type moves when it is low on health._

"Yeah, I think you'll be fighting pretty well."

The lizard simply waved his tail and snapped his jaws playfully, showing off the sharp, white fangs once again.

_Squirtle, the Tiny Turtle Pokemon. During battle, it hides itself in its shell and strikes with bursts of water at every opportunity. Squirtle uses its hard head to stun prey with tackles, then delivers fierce bites. As Squirtle prepares to evolve, its shell grows harder and it begins to develop sharp teeth._

_This Squirtle is male and knows the moves: Water Gun, Tackle, Aura Sphere, and Dragon Pulse. Its ability is Torrent, which boosts its water-type moves when it is low on health._

"All attacking moves, woohoo!" Gary practically whooped. He grinned madly. "Ms. Ketchum, you outdid yourself."

"I did my best," Delia smiled. "I'm glad you're so pleased with him."

Squirtle crossed his arms and smirked arrogantly. Obviously, he agreed with his trainer's not-so-humble opinion.

Oak coughed to get their attention once more. "Well, now that you've all met your partners, let me emphasize a few things regarding them—the moves your Pokemon have inherited are powerful for such young examples of their species, but I suggest you work hard practicing before actually using them in a battle. The more basic moves will be the ones they are best at. You probably won't see the true power of their egg moves until they've fully evolved, and obviously without practice, they won't amount to much."

The kids nodded. That made sense.

"Good. That's all I have for you. I trust the three of you remembered to get Poke Balls, potions, and the other supplies from the store in town?"

When they all answered yes, Oak smiled. "Then you three are free to go. Good luck, and make sure to check up with me every now and again. I'll be keeping any Pokemon you have here at my lab after you reach the limit, so contact me if you need to exchange any of them."

"Yes, Professor," the three replied.

Now that they were free, Gary recalled Squirtle and immediately set off. Leaf picked up her new Bulbasaur carefully and carried it out of the lab, chatting to her Pokemon all the while. Professor Oak turned around and went over to his computer, switching it on and humming a light tune.

Ash looked at Charmander. "What about you? Do you want to stay out or do you want to go back into the Poke Ball?"

Charmander shook his head, so Ash didn't recall him. Delia walked up to him with a smile and hugged her son.

"You'll both do great. I can't wait to hear about all of your adventures," she murmured happily. "By the way, have you thought about nicknaming Charmander?"

"Depends," Ash looked back at Charmander. "Do you want a nickname?"

Charmander held up one of his small, clawed hands and made a chirping sound. Ash took that as confirmation and began to run all of the nicknames he'd come up with in the last few months in case his Pokemon wanted one.

Ash ended up going through about a dozen different options before he finally named one that Charmander liked.

"Pyro?"

Charmander's tail flared up a bit and he grinned. Ash grinned right back. "Pyro it is."

The newly-named Pyro hissed cheerfully and swished his tail around, evidently pleased with his name.

Ash was just about to suggest they head out when a loud shout from Professor Oak made him, Delia, and Pyro jump in surprise.

"Argh! You again?!"

Oak practically dove under his desk with a scowl on his face, hand swiping for something just out of his reach.

Ash tilted his head. "Something wrong, Professor?"

"As a matter of fact, yes!" Oak growled from underneath the desk. "This little rodent is eating my computer cables _again!_ This is the third time this week! Do you have the foggiest idea how expensive these are, you little troublemaker?!"

There was a mild snicker from under the desk and then Oak froze. "Don't you dare, you little—GAHH!"

The three onlookers jumped again as the Professor suddenly spasmed from an electric shock. Oak collapsed on the floor, twitching as sparks flickered over his body. A small, yellow and black Pokemon leapt onto his back with a wide grin on its face, still snickering.

Ash looked at the little creature curiously and held up his Pokedex. It beeped a second later.

_Pichu, the Tiny Mouse Pokemon. Pichu plays with others by touching tails and setting off sparks. When startled, it may send out jolts of electricity. It uses its large ears to avoid danger._

He watched the Pichu jump up and down on the stunned Professor and grinned. It wasn't like electric types were rare, but this was a nice find compared to the common Rattata and Pidgey nesting around Pallet Town.

"Hey, Professor! Can I catch this one?" Ash asked.

"Yes, just get it out of my lab," Oak moaned weakly. "The little rat has already cost me more money in repairs than I care to admit."

Pichu snickered at Oak again and then turned its gaze to Ash, Delia, and Pyro. It grinned and leapt off the paralyzed Professor, apparently challenging them.

Ash grinned right back. "Pyro, you ready for a battle?"

Pyro lashed his tail from side to side and the trilling sound he made was changed to a growl. His eyes narrowed with determination and his claws flexed.

Pichu snickered and suddenly sparked with electricity. Ash only had a second to react before it fired a weak Thunder Shock at Pyro.

"Dodge!"

Pyro leaped to the side and avoided the tiny bolt. He growled at Pichu as it continued to snicker and spark with more electricity.

"Ember."

The Charmander opened its mouth and spat a few hot flames at the mouse, which quickly scurried away to avoid the attack. Pyro charged it after the Ember missed and started to attack Pichu with his sharp claws. Pichu danced away from the move, snickering all the while.

Pyro was getting frustrated, but Ash called out to him. "Keep going, Pyro! Just like that!"

At his command, the fire-type continued to scratch at Pichu, backing the little electric type up as it snickered at him. Suddenly, Pichu bumped into the wall and froze in surprise. It had nowhere else to go.

"Now! Ember!"

Pyro grinned and blasted Pichu with a flurry of small flames and it cried out at the heat, launching another Thunder Shock and _just_ managing to hit Pyro. The Charmander growled angrily at the shock, then lunged forward and landed a Scratch on Pichu. The attack smacked the tiny mouse against the wall, stunning it.

Ash had been scrambling to get a Poke Ball out of his bag while the fight was going on and had one primed just as Pyro knocked Pichu against the wall. He called out. "Pyro, back off!"

The Charmander did as he said, giving Ash a clear line of sight to Pichu. He threw the Poke Ball and tagged the stunned Pichu, triggering the device to open and suck the electric-type inside with a blaze of red light. The ball closed and hit the floor, wriggling furiously.

They waited with bated breath as the Poke Ball continued to wriggle for a few seconds. Then it made a clicking sound and stilled.

Ash's grin came back tenfold. "Yes!"

"Good job, Ash," Oak praised as he managed to stand up, albeit still wincing from the electric shock. "That was well done. Not to mention you just saved me quite a bit of money on repairs."

"I'm so proud of you!" Delia exclaimed, wrapping her son in a tight hug. "You're already on your way to being an amazing trainer!"

Ash managed to hug her back and wheezed as the air was crushed from his lungs. "Thanks, mom. But Pyro did the work, y'know."

"And he did a very good job," Delia released Ash and smiled at the Charmander. "You were great, Pyro! You'll be powerful in no time!"

Pyro smiled toothily and made a loud chirp at the praise.

Ash picked up the Poke Ball that contained Pichu and stared at it curiously. "What was it doing in here, anyway?"

"Eating my computer cords," Oak growled. "Electric-types can consume electricity as a food source. Anything with an electric current is a snack to them. Usually, they don't come into the lab because I have a charge station in the corral specifically designed for that purpose, but that little rat is always up to no good. It prefers to give me grief and eat my important equipment rather than take the easy way out in the corral."

"It'll still eat regular Pokemon food, right? I don't have that many electric items in my bag."

The Professor nodded. "Of course. There are charge stations at Pokemon Centers that Pichu can eat from, though. I'd advise letting it do that as much as possible. Pichu are fairly weak electric-types, so they have to build up their electricity by consuming it."

Delia glanced at Pyro, who was sniffing at the spot where he'd been shocked. "I think you should give Pyro and Pichu a potion or two to help them recover. You don't want to set off with your Pokemon already tired out."

"Yeah, sounds good," Ash held Pyro's Poke Ball out and smiled at the fire type. "You did great, Pyro. Take a quick break, alright?"

The Charmander chirped again as Ash recalled him. Oak took both of the Poke Balls from the boy and carried them to another room for healing.

Ash's mother tapped his shoulder. "Check your Pokedex. It should be updated with Pichu's information now that you've captured it. Find out what it can do."

He did exactly that, pulling out the device and selecting the tab indicating the Pokemon he owned. Ash tapped on Pichu's name and the Pokedex recited its information.

_This Pichu is male and knows the moves: Thundershock, Tail Whip, and Tackle. It's ability is Static, which can paralyze opponents that make physical contact with Pichu._

Ash smiled. "Not bad. Pichu will probably be great for catching other Pokemon if he can paralyze them. I think I'll have to test that out on the road."

"You'll want to train it up a good deal before trying that, I think!" Oak called from the other room. "From what I can tell, it's young and rather weak. It only stunned me for a minute at the most. A wild Pokemon will shake off a move like that even faster."

"Alright," he replied. "How long until they're finished healing, do you think?"

"Just a few minutes. You should take this chance to look through the Pokedex some more. You'll want to learn how to use it as best you—"

The door was suddenly thrown open and Gary stepped in with an irritated look. "Hey, Ash! Stop goofing around! I've been waiting outside for like ten minutes to challenge you to a battle!"

Ash only looked mildly apologetic. "Sorry, I got distracted catching a Pokemon."

Gary stared in surprise. "Wait, _what?"_

"I found that Pichu I was telling you about eating my computer cables," Oak growled in annoyance as he returned to the room with Pyro and Pichu's Poke Balls in-hand. "Ash was kind enough to set his Charmander on the little rat and capture it."

Gary's jaw dropped. "You're kidding me! You haven't even left the lab and you already caught something?!"

Before Ash could even get a word in, Gary jabbed a finger at him. "Whatever! I'll just go and catch more Pokemon than you! Smell ya later, Ashy-boy!"

With that, Gary whipped around and bolted out the door. Ash blinked after him. The guy would probably catch the first Pokemon he saw.

Oak sighed at his grandson's brashness. "I hope he remembers to actually battle the Pokemon he finds before trying to catch them. He can be forgetful when he gets riled up like that."

Delia smiled and hugged her son once again. "Ash, I'm going to get to work in the corral. Make sure you let me know when you reach Viridian City, okay?"

"I will," Ash promised.

"Good. You take good care of Pyro and Pichu, alright? They're your friends now. You have to trust them."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Alright. Well, bye sweetheart. Good luck!" Delia kissed the top of his head, then turned around and left through another room. Ash smiled after her.

Oak returned Ash's Poke Balls to him. The Professor nodded at the boy. "I really am grateful that you captured Pichu, Ash. You'll do well with him once you curb that mischievous side of him a bit."

Ash smirked. "I think it'll just be a matter of pointing that mischief in a good direction. Thanks for healing my Pokemon, Professor Oak."

"You're welcome. Now, you'd best be off. Viridian City is a two day walk from here, not to mention that Gary and Leaf have a head start on you!"

The boy nodded, spinning on his heels as he bolted out of the door. He set Pyro loose and grinned at the Charmander. "C'mon, Pyro! Let's get going!"

Pyro swished his tail and let out a delighted chirp as he chased after his trainer.

* * *

Ash and Pyro took to walking along the trail once they got onto Route One. They both needed to walk to build up their stamina. Ash knew that Pyro was still young, so the Charmander needed to exercise as much as possible to build up muscle.

Most of the morning was fairly relaxed. Ash just talked to Pyro about himself. Things he liked, disliked, his dreams, his mom—everything he could think of. Pyro just listened and occasionally made a sound in response, including a trilling laugh when Ash told him about how he and Gary wrestled in the mud when they were toddlers.

They saw a few wild Pokemon while they were walking, but Ash decided not to make Pyro battle again quite yet. He figured it would be a better idea to get some training done before they challenged another wild Pokemon, or at least make sure Pichu would listen to him. After all, Pyro and Pichu weren't particularly strong. The pair of them were little more than freshly-hatched Pokemon.

When Ash eventually ran out of things to tell Pyro about and they fell into a comfortable silence, he began to think about what the Charmander should practice once they began training. He obviously needed to work on power and Ash really wanted to try and work on Pyro's egg moves. At the same time, he was debating how they were going to win their first gym battle.

While Viridian City had a gym, it was all but banned to any trainer without seven badges. Giovanni was a ruthless battler, and he was no foe any new trainer could face with even a hope of victory.

Pewter City was his best bet. The Gym Leader there certainly wasn't weak, but it was the nearest gym that would use low level Pokemon for battles there. Most gyms were like that; depending on how strong a challenger was, they would adjust their strength accordingly. The only gyms that didn't hold back their strength were the ones in Viridian, Saffron City, and Cinnabar Island. Ash was far away from Saffron and Cinnabar. He wouldn't be challenging them anytime soon, and Giovanni was completely out of the question.

The man had only given out three badges in the last five years. He was a menace.

Ash shook his head. He could think about fighting the stronger Gym Leaders later, once his Pokemon were trained and he had a few badges under his belt. For now, he needed to focus on the first one—Pewter City.

The Gym Leader, Brock, used rock-type Pokemon. They were sturdy and powerful, but had many weaknesses that could be exploited. There was just one problem: Ash had no Pokemon with a type advantage over them. Quite the opposite, as both Pyro and Pichu were vulnerable to rock Pokemon. Pyro was weak to rock-type moves and since a fair few rock-types were complemented with ground-type attributes, Pichu would be even _less_ capable of fighting. Electricity did absolutely nothing to ground-types.

Ash actually had no idea what to do about Pichu aside from train him for later battles, but Pyro he could work with. He'd memorized the moves Charmander could learn ages ago, after all. His best bet right now against rock-type Pokemon was to teach Pyro Metal Claw. It was a steel-type move that could rend even a rock Pokemon's tough exterior. He hoped that was enough. Relying on a single move in a gym battle against multiple opponents generally wasn't the best plan, but it was the best he had for the time being.

He continued to think as they walked, hoping that a good strategy would eventually come to mind.

* * *

It was just after midday when they caught up with Leaf.

Ash stopped when Pyro hissed and gestured further up the path with his short arm. He grinned when he saw Leaf and her Bulbasaur at the base of a tree. He watched as the girl rose from a crouch with a Poke Ball in her hand and a wide smile on her face.

"Hey, Leaf!"

Leaf spun around and Bulbasaur growled at the surprise, but his trainer just grinned and waved. "Hey, Ash! You finally caught up."

He walked over with Pyro still beside him. "Sorry, I ended up catching a Pokemon that was causing the Professor trouble in his lab."

"Oh, really?" Leaf giggled. "I thought you just couldn't escape from your mom. She's so cool! Saur here actually just won a battle for me with Power Whip. I think he practiced it before I got him."

"That is cool," Ash admitted. "Saur, huh?"

She nodded. "Yep. What about you? Did Charmander get a name?"

"He did," he gestured to Charmander. "His name is Pyro."

"Nice to meet you, Pyro," Leaf smiled at the little fire-type. Pyro waved his stubby hand back at her, making a happy trill. Saur just grunted and shuffled over to a sunny patch on the trail, watching the lizard's tail flame warily.

Ash looked at the Poke Ball in her hand. "So, what did you catch?"

"A Spearow. He was giving Saur the evil eye and it was on from there. Saur just smacked him out of the tree! It was a pretty quick battle. What did you catch?"

"You mean the little troublemaker from the Professor's lab?" Ash grinned. "Pichu. He's not too strong, but once I train him, I think those electric shocks of his will come in handy. Pyro was great at battling him."

He suddenly smirked. "Hey, you and I both have two Pokemon now. How about a battle?"

"As much as I would _love_ to beat you, I don't think that would work out right now," Leaf refused teasingly. "Saur just got done fighting and I'm pretty sure Spearow is unconscious."

"Gotcha. We could travel to Viridian City together, then? We can heal up at the Pokemon Center and battle there."

"Now _that_ I'm down for," she agreed.

* * *

They spent the rest of the day walking along the trail together, chatting about each other's goals and plans. Leaf was just as determined as Ash and Gary to be the best Pokemon trainer out there. Her idol was the Kanto Champion Lance, after all. Of course, a lot of trainers looked up to the legendary Dragon Master, including Ash. He was one of the most powerful trainers in the entire world, commanding a ferocious team of dragons and draconic Pokemon.

Watching Lance fight was awe-inspiring, even on a TV. Ash couldn't imagine how incredible those battles must be up close and personal. But since it was his dream to become the greatest Pokemon Master in the world, he would have to face the Champion in battle one day. And he would have to win.

But that was a long way off—years at the very _least_. For now, he just had to worry about getting his first gym badge. Baby steps.

Ash and Leaf finally stopped walking when the sun began to set. They found a small clearing just off the trail and decided to make camp. He gathered the firewood with Pyro while Leaf and Saur cleaned up the area of leaves and rocks and such. When they were all done with chores and the sleeping bags were out, Pyro lit the firewood with his tail flame and the little group settled down.

"I think now's probably a good time to meet our new Pokemon, Ash," Leaf suggested. "Don't you? They're probably less likely to freak out now that we're all relaxed."

"Alright. I'll set Pichu loose first?" He asked.

"Fine by me. I need to grab a Potion for Spearow, anyways. He's probably still a bit shaken up."

Ash nodded and took out Pichu's Poke Ball, tapping the release and setting the little electric-type loose. Pichu's eyes were closed initially, but they opened up blearily after a moment or two.

"Hey there," Ash smiled at him. "How are you feeling?"

Pichu looked around and seemed rather confused. Ash did his best to fill him in. "I captured you at the lab, remember?"

The electric-type's eyes cleared in understanding and he nodded. Feeling optimistic, Ash took a chance and held his hand out to him. "Listen, Pichu. I want to become the strongest Pokemon Master in the world. I'd really like for you to join me. I promise to make you as strong as you can be. How about it? Do you wanna travel with us?"

Pyro made a friendly chirp in an effort to appear welcoming. Pichu smiled happily and reached up with his tiny paw to tap Ash's hand, but as he watched, the innocent smile turned into a devilish smirk.

A shock of electricity made his whole body spasm and jerk. Ash ended up on the ground with a yelp and began to twitch. Pichu's smirked turned into a full on grin as he cackled triumphantly.

Across the fire, Leaf and Saur were in hysterics. The girl was rolling in the dirt through her giggling fit and her Bulbasaur was making a barking sound that essentially amounted to the same thing. Even Pyro was chuckling a little, seeing as his trainer wasn't actually hurt from the shocking prank.

Ash got most of his body back under control in a minute. He leered up at Pichu, who was sitting on his chest and sniggering with delight. "Think that's real funny, do you?"

Pichu snickered agreeably and jumped off of Ash. He didn't make too much of a fuss though, so Ash figured that the prank was probably more for laughs than actual disobedience. The boy sat up and gave Leaf a deadpan look as she continued to laugh.

"It wasn't _that_ funny."

"Are you _kidding me?!"_ Her chest was heaving and it seemed like there wasn't enough oxygen in the air to fuel her hysterics. "You squeaked like a Rattata and started flopping around like a Magikarp!"

Pichu and Saur nodded agreement, both of them still sniggering. Ash reddened and looked away. Pyro came over and crawled into his trainer's lap, keeping his tail flame on the ground where it wouldn't hurt Ash. He had gotten over the amusement of the prank and decided to give his trainer some comfort to ease his ruffled pride.

At least Gary hadn't seen that one. It would've been way worse.

Leaf eventually got over her giggle fit and managed to remember how to breathe. She took a drink from her canteen and offered some to Saur. The grass type took a small sip, then settled down and began to close his eyes.

Ash looked at Pichu once the electric-type finished laughing over his prank. "Say, do you want a nickname?"

Pichu considered it for a bit, then shrugged and shook his head. Ash figured that the electric mouse decided his prankster attitude was plenty enough to be remembered without a unique name, so he just went with it. "Alright then. Let me know if you change your mind, okay?"

Pichu nodded and then yawned. Apparently, he was feeling tired. Considering how young Pichu was and the time of night, Ash wasn't surprised. He pulled out Pichu's Poke Ball.

"Do you want to sleep outside, or in the ball?"

Ash blinked when Pichu took one look at the Poke Ball and bristled, giving it the best evil eye such a small creature could muster. He had to admit, the amount of dislike that was carried in that gaze was actually impressive.

"I'll take that as a no."

A nod from the mouse confirmed his guess and Ash put the Poke Ball away. Pichu relaxed once it was out of sight and looked around for a spot to get comfortable. He finally just crawled on top of Pyro and settled there. Surprisingly, the fire lizard didn't seem to mind. Though then again, Pichu's weight was probably next to unnoticeable.

Ash lightly ran his fingers through Pichu's thin fur and felt a slight current run through him, though it wasn't painful. It made him shiver, but the electricity Pichu's body gave off was just a side effect of Static.

Across the fire, Leaf took out her own Poke Ball and set her newly captured Spearow loose. The bird looked like it had been beaten down quite thoroughly, and was too tired to even give his trainer the classic Spearow glare.

Leaf winced sympathetically once she saw the bird's sorry state. "Ouch. Sorry about getting so rough with you earlier, Spearow. How about I heal you up? I've got a potion that will make your wounds stop hurting."

Spearow just nodded exhaustedly and Ash quietly whistled. Saur had really done a number on Spearow to have knocked all the fight out of the small bird. The knowledge that flying-types had an inherent advantage over grass-types apparently meant nothing in the face of the Bulbasaur's aggressive battling style.

Leaf evidently agreed with him. She frowned with worry when Spearow failed to even squawk an objection and gently sprayed the potion over the injuries Saur had inflicted. The bird initially flinched away from the stinging sensation brought on by the rapid healing process a potion instigated, but relaxed once his wounds started to fade away.

Spearow ruffled his feathers and seemed a bit more relaxed now that he didn't feel as though he'd been smashed all over the forest. Which, in fact, he had been.

"Feeling better?" Leaf asked.

When the bird nodded, she smiled brightly. "Good. Spearow, I want to know if you'd like to travel with me. I'll help train you into a really strong Fearow. What do you think? Is that okay?"

They paused when they heard a loud snore and everyone looked over to Saur, who was now deeply asleep. Spearow leered at the grass-type furiously and made a low squawk, agreeing with Leaf whilst simultaneously promising vengeance one day on his ruthless teammate.

Leaf stroked Spearow's feathers to help him relax and gazed between her two Pokemon with a sigh. "That might take a while to work on. You're lucky Pyro and Pichu get along so well, Ash."

"I think they're just too tired to think about fighting right now, but yeah," he agreed. Ash yawned and settled down in his sleeping bag. Pyro made a slight grumble for the disturbance, but didn't move. Pichu was already asleep and hadn't even noticed.

Leaf smiled as the young Pokemon all began to fall asleep and murmured to Spearow. "You can sleep wherever you want. If you want to sleep in one of the branches around the camp, that's fine. I'll wake you up when we're about to head out tomorrow, okay?"

Spearow chirped and quickly flew to a low-hanging branch. The bird shuffled around a few times, then closed his eyes and fell asleep almost instantly.

Seeing as all the Pokemon were now happily slumbering away, their trainers joined them soon after.

* * *

Waking up the next morning reminded the group that they'd basically forgotten dinner the night before. Ash and Leaf hastily gave each of their famished teammates a can of Pokemon food. Pyro, Saur, and Spearow ate rather cleanly. Pichu on the other hand…

They all stopped eating to gape at Pichu as the mouse shoveled food into his mouth like a starving beast. Crumbs got everywhere and his cheek pouches were swelling rapidly.

Ash put a stop to that. "Pichu, slow down! You don't want to choke!"

Pichu tried to snap a retort and paid for it by getting food caught in his throat. The little electric-type furiously beat his chest with a tiny paw in an effort to get breakfast down.

With a sigh, Ash pulled out his canteen and offered it to Pichu. He held it up and tilted it when Pichu grabbed the bottle furiously, watching as the mouse took a big gulp and managed to free the trapped food in his throat. The mouse sat down and sighed in relief, wiping crumbs and water from his mouth.

Ash smirked and scratched Pichu around his ears. "Settle down. There's no rush. I'd rather you eat slow than choke trying to stuff it all down as fast as you can."

Pichu nodded and let out a little belch. Ash chuckled and returned to a tree stump where his own breakfast lay. He looked over his shoulder a second later and was happy to see that Pichu was eating again, albeit a good deal slower.

Leaf looked up at him from where she was eating beside Saur. "So I figure we cover some ground this morning. Viridian City isn't too far away now, so we could probably make it there by noon. We can heal our Pokemon there and then have that battle."

"Sounds like a plan," Ash agreed. He took a bite from his sandwich and chewed thoughtfully for a few seconds. "After that I think I'm going to stay in Viridian for a day or two. I really need to get some training done with Pyro and Pichu. Pyro needs to learn Metal Claw before I challenge the Pewter Gym and Pichu has to work on boosting his power. What about you?"

"I'm leaving right after our battle. I think Saur and Spearow will get a fair bit stronger fighting all the bug-types in Viridian Forest," Leaf explained. "Even if Saur's only a little bit stronger once we get to Pewter City, I'm pretty sure he can beat down a couple of rock-types."

Saur growled agreement. Spearow let out a low shriek at the grass-type, then returned to his breakfast. The Bulbasaur seemed to be contemplating whether or not to Vine Whip the impudent bird, but then decided that his food was more important.

Their trainer groaned. "And I'll have to work on their teamwork. Maybe if we're lucky, we'll run into a double battle in Viridian Forest. I think they'd make a scary team—Spearow can stun opponents and then Bulbasaur can pulverize them."

Ash mentally (but cheerily) apologized to any and every poor bug catcher in Viridian Forest that was unfortunate enough to challenge Leaf to a battle. He was pretty sure the girl would frighten even Pewter City's Gym Leader. She was ruthless.

"Alright, well let's get going once everyone is finished eating. I want to get as much training done today as possible," he stated.

"Agreed."

* * *

Another problem with Pichu arose when they were ready to travel. Ash and Leaf decided to recall their Pokemon so as to move faster, but Pichu took one look at the Poke Ball and blatantly threatened his trainer whenever the device was pointed at him. Ash was unwilling to risk the mouse's ire and simply let Pichu hitch a ride on his shoulder while they walked. It was a good thing the electric-type weighed basically nothing; they had a lot of ground to cover.

The road to Viridian City was quiet, as expected. Ash and Leaf ended up discussing strategies to use at the Pewter Gym (though Leaf's basically amounted to snagging the rock-types with Saur's Vine Whip and then beating them into oblivion). It became uncomfortably clear to Ash that his team really was limited in their ability to fight rock Pokemon.

The more they talked about it, the more obvious it was—even if Pyro mastered Metal Claw before they made it to the gym, rock-types had incredibly high defenses because of their tough exterior. Assuming he could beat down the first opponent, Pyro would probably be too exhausted to win against the second. He just didn't have the power in his current evolutionary stage. And if he got knocked out, Pichu's weak Thunder Shocks and Tackles would do little more than tickle the Gym Leader's Pokemon.

Ash's shoulders slumped when he realized that this first gym was already going to be the hardest challenge he'd ever had. Leaf could only pat his back sympathetically.

By the time noon came around, Viridian City was in sight. The two trainers made one last push to reach the Pokemon Center and were relieved when the red-roofed building was finally in front of them. Leaf led the way into the center and to the front desk.

Nurse Joy was a face familiar to practically anyone. The woman smiled as Ash and Leaf approached her at the desk. "Good morning! Welcome to the Pokemon Center. How can I help you?"

"Our Pokemon need to be healed," Ash started politely. "Also, are we able to register for the Indigo League here?"

"You most certainly can. Do you two have Pokedexes or other IDs?"

Both Ash and Leaf procured their Pokedexes and Joy took them both for a minute, installing them into a computer slot so that they could be registered. Once that was taken care of, she handed the devices back with a smile. "There you are. Now just place your Pokemon on a tray and I'll have them checked over shortly."

"Thank you, Nurse Joy," they both said gratefully. Ash and Leaf placed their pokeballs on a tray and Pichu simply hopped onto it. A Chansey came by and took the Poke Balls and Pichu to the back moments later, apparently not surprised that one of its patients was unconfined.

"You're welcome," Joy replied. "By the way, are either of you planning to stay the night?"

Ash nodded, but Leaf shook her head. "I'm leaving after we battle. I want to make some progress through Viridian Forest while there's still daylight left."

Joy frowned for a moment. "Make sure you stock up on Antidotes at the Pokemon Mart. The bug-types in the forest are very fond of using poison in battle."

The two trainers thanked her again for the information and retreated to the cafe once Ash got a room key for the night. Ash and Leaf rested for the better part of an hour, enjoying their food and the chance to sit down after walking all the way from Pallet Town.

Once the hour was up, Joy called them on the overhead speakers. "Ash, Leaf, your Pokemon are ready to be picked up!"

Ash stood with a grin. "You ready for a battle?"

Leaf smirked right back. "Are you?"

They raced to make it to the front desk.

* * *

Five minutes later, Ash and Leaf faced off on the dirt training field behind the Pokemon Center. The two trainers were grinning at each other widely, unable to contain their excitement.

Leaf called across the field. "So what's it gonna be? One on one, or two on two?"

"Is that even a question?" Ash reached up to scratch Pichu's ears. The mouse was firmly latched onto his shoulder once more—he seemed fond of the spot. "Two on two! Let's test out our new partners!"

"Alright. Just remember, you asked for it!" Leaf took her first Poke Ball and hurled it up. "Saur, you're up!"

The Bulbasaur materialized with a flash of light and growled. He gave Ash a glare that showed he meant business. Ash was all for it.

He set Pyro loose and the Charmander immediately swished his burning tail from side to side. Pyro took a look at Saur, then glanced back at Ash questioningly. His trainer grinned. "We're going to battle them, Pyro. Don't hold back!"

Pyro's eyes flashed with excitement and he turned back to Saur with a hiss in his throat. The grass-type growled again, unperturbed that his opponent was a fire-type.

Leaf provided the opening salvo.

"Vine Whip it."

Saur's vines shot out from his bulb like twin snakes, then lashed out at Pyro's head and body. Ash reacted as quickly as he could.

"Dodge it. Then Ember."

Pyro ducked under the vine aiming for his head, leaped over the one going for his body, then spat a series of small flames at his opponent. Saur frantically scrambled out of the way and dodged. The Bulbasaur stopped when Ember ended and peered at Pyro warily. Apparently, he wasn't quite as fearless as he wanted them to think.

Leaf wasn't about to let Saur give in to some flames, though. "Tackle. Follow up with Power Whip!"

As Saur lunged at his target, Ash frowned. He really didn't want Pyro to be on the receiving end of Power Whip, even if he resisted it. After all, Saur had knocked out Spearow with the same move. He doubted Power Whip would knock out Pyro, it would still deal more damage than he was entirely comfortable with.

He decided to try something risky. "Intercept it with Dragon Rush!"

Pyro's tail flame flared and his large pupils narrowed into slits. As he began to charge Saur, the grass-type froze, flinching back. Pyro picked up speed and crashed harshly into the Bulbasaur, knocking his target off its feet and sending it sprawling. The Charmander hissed and spat another Ember which made contact this time.

Saur cried out in pain and reeled away from Pyro's onslaught. Leaf called out to him, alarmed and trying to get her Pokemon back into gear. He didn't look anywhere near as confident as when the battle began, and completely forgot about using Power Whip on his fire-type opponent.

Ash vaguely remembered that Dragon Rush could make an opponent flinch sometimes from the sheer ferocity of the attack. What Pyro had executed was essentially just an overrated Tackle, but it was nice to know that the flinch effect could still take hold even if Dragon Rush was still totally unmastered. Pyro certainly hadn't managed to use any actual draconic energy.

He wouldn't worry about it now. It worked, and that was all that mattered. Saur was injured and stunned—there was no better opportunity to finish him off.

"Use Ember again! Keep at it until it goes down!"

The Charmander thrashed his tail from side to side and unleashed more of the small flames. Saur avoided the first few shots, but winced and collapsed a moment later. It was obvious that Pyro's Dragon Rush, though incomplete, had dealt a fair amount of damage. With the Bulbasaur unable to move, Pyro spat another burst of small flames and made a direct hit. When he stopped to see the effects, Saur was unconscious.

Ash's grin widened tenfold. "Great job, Pyro!"

Pyro spat a few small flames into the air and let out a delighted chirp. He seemed to bask in the light of his victory.

Leaf recalled Saur and put his Poke Ball away. "Not bad, but you lucked out with that Dragon Rush."

"We've got to work on it, but it's pretty great, huh?" Ash replied. He returned Pyro and reached up to scratch Pichu's ears. "Alright Pichu, get out there."

Pichu leaped down from his shoulder and scurried onto the field, his cheek pouches sparking while he snickered. Leaf smirked at the mouse and took out her second Poke Ball. "You got lucky beating Saur, Ash, but good luck beating Talon!"

Her Spearow was released into the air with a loud shriek. He glared at Pichu with pure arrogance, clearly finding the electric mouse to be beneath him.

Ash raised his eyebrows. "Talon? When did you nickname him?"

"Just before we left camp this morning," Leaf answered. She looked utterly confident despite Saur's loss. Her Spearow shrieked again and Leaf responded. "Get that Pichu! Fury Attack!"

Talon instantly dove with a flap of his small wings. His beak was aimed right for Pichu, ready to stab and peck until the mouse was unable to battle.

"Avoid it! Thundershock!"

Pichu waited, still smirking as the Spearow closed in, then began to dance away from its attacks. All the while, he snickered and mocked the bird, occasionally shooting small bolts of electricity. The shocks were weak and didn't do too much damage to Talon, but they were enough to ruffle his smooth feathers.

Talon finally got tired of the Pichu's taunts and screeched furiously. The sudden blast of sound at close range made Pichu cringe and cover his ears. He froze up for just a split second.

Talon seized his opportunity with righteous fury.

He peppered Pichu with vicious pecks of his beak, hitting the electric mouse anywhere and everywhere he could. Pichu squeaked in pain and tried to shock the bird, but Talon was so furious that the weak electric attacks only egged him on further.

Pichu tried to Tackle his opponent when the electricity failed, but Talon took the hit like it was nothing and then whacked the mouse over the head with his wing, knocking it out cold. Talon shrieked his victory and flew back to Leaf, landing on her arm to sneer at Ash and the defeated Pichu.

Ash sighed and recalled the electric-type into his Poke Ball. He couldn't say he was surprised. Talon had lived in the wild longer than Pichu had, certainly. The mouse was hardly a few months old at most. Even with his type advantage, if Pichu's moves were weak, then to the Spearow they were nothing more than irritants. And irritate him, they had.

Leaf smiled and scratched Talon's head feathers lightly. "Good boy. That was a great battle."

The Spearow cawed, causing his trainer to smirk. Leaf recalled her Pokemon and waited as Ash walked over. He was still grinning. "So we call it a draw?"

"For now," she admitted. "But I'll really beat you down the next time we meet."

"I'd like to see you try."

They walked back to the Pokemon Center together and got their worn-out teams back to Nurse Joy. Within an hour, all four of their Pokemon were healed completely and Leaf headed out to the Viridian Forest. Ash watched her go and then returned to the practice field.

He took a deep breath and released his revitalized Pokemon. It was time to train.


	2. The Earth Master

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ash trains in Viridian City and encounters Kanto's most formidable Gym Leader, Giovanni. With the addition of a surprising new team member, he makes his way through Viridian Forest to challenge Brock in Pewter City...

_Chapter Two: The Earth Master_

When nighttime rolled around, Ash sat down on the training field with his exhausted partners. He'd spent the last six hours doing nothing but training Pyro and Pichu, both of whom had worked hard to improve and were now totally burnt out.

They'd only really focused on two things: teaching Pyro Metal Claw and making Pichu stronger in general. The best way to learn Metal Claw (or so the Pokedex claimed) was by having Pyro scratch at hard rocks repeatedly. Fortunately, there were plenty of those around the training field. Pyro had slashed at the stones for hours until his claws began to harden and gained a metallic glint to them. It was far from mastered, but at least Metal Claw was a viable option in battle now.

Pichu spent the whole time doing little more than discharging electricity and running around to charge it back up once he ran out. The mouse was furious that he'd lost to Leaf's Spearow, but he put his frustration to good use by training relentlessly. His stamina needed a lot of work. Ash had to bring him into the Pokemon Center three times to feed at the charge station for electric-types just to get his power back to full capacity.

Their hard work was already bearing fruit. He wouldn't be knocking out Pewter City's rock-types anytime soon, but he'd probably make Talon rethink a direct attack the next time they battled.

For now, Ash and his Pokemon were sprawled out in the dirt on the training field, getting their breath back as the moon started to rise in the sky.

Ash felt a cool breeze blow over his skin and finally sat up, looking at Pyro and Pichu's exhausted frames. The young trainer pulled out their Poke Balls and called to them softly. "Both of you worked really hard. Take a break now, okay? We'll heal you up and then we can go to sleep afterwards."

His Pokemon just nodded. Even Pichu was too tired to complain about being put back into the Poke Ball. The electric-type hated the device with a passion, (apparently suspended animation wasn't for everyone) but he didn't mind it as much when he was dead tired. Ash figured Pichu liked to be outside the ball when he was full of energy so he could enjoy the fresh air and run around. Sitting in a Poke Ball when he could be doing something exciting probably seemed like a waste of time.

Ash recalled the pair and forced himself to get up, wincing at the soreness in his legs. He trudged his way back to the Pokemon Center, too tired to be rushed.

As he walked over to the front desk, Ash blearily wiped some of the sleepiness from his eyes. Without thinking, he ended up bumping into a person in front of him. He stepped back quickly and made to apologize. "Sorry, sorry. I wasn't looking…"

He trailed off as his gaze went up, staring at a tall man who was now eyeing him from over his shoulder. The man had dark brown hair and wore a black suit with dark pants. His eyes were dark as well, with some quality to them that made Ash shiver slightly.

The man turned away after a second and grunted. "Just don't do it again."

Ash nodded and averted his gaze, embarrassed by the accident. He waited while the man received six Poke Balls from Nurse Joy, who smiled at him somewhat hesitantly.

"They're all ready to go. Just don't send too many injured Pokemon back to me, alright?"

The man smirked. "I make no promises. Anyone willing to challenge me knows the risks. They will have to deal with the consequences of their decision."

Joy sighed. "Well, you can't say I don't try…"

He grunted and turned around, walking past Ash with a muttered. "Excuse me."

Ash watched the man go and then approached Nurse Joy. She smiled more brightly than the man before him. "Welcome back, Mr. Ketchum. Finally finished training for today?"

"Yeah," Ash yawned in exhaustion as he handed her his Poke Balls. "I think Pyro and Pichu are too tired to train more anyways. We've almost got Metal Claw down, though…just a little more."

"I think you'll have it completed by the time you get through Viridian Forest," Joy replied. She took the Poke Balls and gave them to her Chansey on a tray. "With all the bug catchers running around in there, your Charmander will have many chances to use it in battle."

The boy nodded tiredly and Joy's smile became sympathetic. "Why don't you go get something to eat in the cafeteria? I'll call you on the overhead when your Pokemon are ready."

Ash thanked her and headed off to do just that. He was too tired to focus on anything else and didn't notice the man he'd bumped into earlier watching him curiously.

* * *

Ash sat down with a plate full of food and dug in. Now that he was getting some food into him, thinking was a bit easier. He decided to read about his current team's attributes while he ate, so he pulled his Pokedex out and selected the overview feature for Pichu. Ash knew Charmander's information like the back of his hand, but he didn't actually know too much about Pichu's.

From what he could tell, Pichu grew fairly quickly. They were among the few "Baby" Pokemon that were rarely produced by parents in the wild. Baby Pokemon like Pichu, Igglybuff, and Azurill rarely occurred outside of captivity unless the conditions were favorable enough to support them. The reason for that wasn't well known, but researchers speculated that it was an adaptation to give the offspring a better chance of survival. Only the strongest and healthiest of their adult forms would produce Baby Pokemon because they were the best of the species.

Scientists had wondered then, why would the strongest adults of a species produce the incredibly rare, but weak Baby Pokemon at all? The reason turned out to be, of all things, power. Baby Pokemon seemed to have greater potential overall than those of their species that did not go through the extra evolutionary stage. Moreover, some of them had the capability of learning extremely rare moves _only_ while they were in that stage, though they did have to evolve to utilize their full power.

Pichu was a perfect example of that. If a Pikachu hatched from an egg, it would be stronger than Pichu initially, yes, but it would miss out on the opportunity to learn what was decidedly one of the most powerful electric-type moves out there: Volt Tackle.

The technique was exclusive to the Pichu line and considered the signature of an expertly-trained Pikachu or Raichu. Even in the hands of a Pikachu, Volt Tackle was impressive. Ash had never actually seen the move before, but it was rumored that Lt. Surge of Vermillion City had a Raichu capable of using the powerful electric attack.

He would find out one day, when he faced Surge in the Vermillion Gym.

The problem was that Pichu would evolve before too long. Baby Pokemon grew incredibly fast compared to the majority of other species. That was great in the long run, but it gave Ash a very short amount of time to teach Pichu a move that he hadn't ever actually seen before.

The good news, as he understood it from reading the data in the Pokedex, was that Volt Tackle didn't have to be perfected in that time—Pichu just had to get a rough grasp on it in his current evolutionary stage. If he evolved into Pikachu before getting even a basic semblance of the technique, he would likely never learn it.

Ash decided that Volt Tackle would take priority for Pichu. From what he could tell by reading about it, the move followed his plan for training Pichu anyways—it required a large amount of power and speed to perform. Those attributes were important to the Pichu line regardless, so the training would work out nicely. That was the theory, at least.

If he didn't teach Pichu Volt Tackle, he supposed that the move Wild Charge could take its place. But Volt Tackle and Wild Charge were, in fact, very different, despite their similarities. Both moves required the user to charge a cloak of electricity around their bodies, then recklessly ram into the target. There was a major difference, though—Volt Tackle required a much higher speed to pull off. Wild Charge used sheer mass and power to attack. It didn't have to be fast. Like Take Down, it just needed blunt force to be effective.

But Volt Tackle was far more devastating because it forced the user to charge far denser electricity and rush at blinding speed, essentially turning them into a lightning missile. The resulting impact was far more precise and made the recoil damage greater, but the payoff would be worth it.

It was an odd conundrum, why Volt Tackle was a move exclusive to the Pichu line. Researchers had pondered this curiously—there were many other electric-types that were even faster than their evolutionarily line, yet Volt Tackle simply _could not_ be taught. There was no documented case of a Jolteon, Manectric, or even the incredibly rare Raikou using the technique. The move was a mystery.

In fact, Pichu itself was the answer.

While studying Baby Pokemon, researchers discovered that Pichu were born with a completely unique charge organ attached to their main electrical organ. The organ stored a separate source of electrical energy for Pichu to access. However, it would not react if a Pichu used a common electric attack like Thunder Shock.

The reason became clear when Pichu used Volt Tackle.

Pichu's secondary charge organ was _specifically_ for Volt Tackle. The move switched on a kind of "backup generator" and unleashed the steady surge of dense electricity needed for Volt Tackle. It was a unique adaptation only possible because of the Baby Pokemon stage.

Pikachu that hatched from eggs would never be able to access the secondary organ because their primary electrical organs were larger than Pichu's. The size difference would cut off any flow of electricity from the second organ, thus making it benign. For the secondary organ to be of any use, it had to be accessed in the Pichu stage and connected to the primary organ with the electrical surge produced from using Volt Tackle. Once the electrical stream was initiated, the organ would stay active and grow even after Pichu's evolution.

Ash wanted Pichu to learn Volt Tackle. Not only would it be an incredibly potent weapon once the little mouse evolved, but it would allow Pichu to truly reach his full potential.

He finished reading up all he could on Volt Tackle and found that all the research had tired out his brain along with his body. Setting his Pokedex aside, Ash made to take another bite of his dinner. Before he could though, he heard the sound of heavy boots step near.

"Excuse me, young man."

Ash looked up and managed not to gulp at the sight of the same trainer he had bumped into earlier. He was an imposing figure—dark and tall, with a hard look on his face.

"Can I help you, sir?" Ash asked, trying not to stutter.

The man cracked a slight smirk and glanced at the chair across from the boy. "Do you mind if I join you?"

"Oh, um, not at all," Ash hesitantly gestured to the seat.

"Thank you," the man replied. He sat down and settled into the chair, leaning back to relax a bit.

An awkward silence took over the table as the man's dark eyes trained onto Ash and studied him intensely. Ash had no idea how to react and thought about saying something, but the expression on the older trainer's face made him think better of it.

Minutes must have passed before the man finally broke the uncomfortable silence. "I should introduce myself. My name is Giovanni."

Ash's eyes widened. "Giovanni? Wait—the Gym Leader, Giovanni? The ground-type Master, Giovanni?"

"The very same," Giovanni seemed slightly amused by the boy's surprise. "You seem to be a new trainer, are you not?"

"Yes-yes, I am," Ash replied shakily. "I started traveling the day before yesterday—oh! Sorry, my name's Ash. I'm from Pallet Town."

"Ash. A good name," the Gym Leader said thoughtfully. He noticed Ash looked confused and continued. "I would assume you're going to Pewter City to challenge Brock, then?"

The boy nodded. "Yes, sir. But I think it's going to be difficult for my Pokemon."

"How so?"

"Well, my starter Pokemon was Charmander," Ash began. "He's growing fast and I'm teaching him Metal Claw to fight Pewter Gym's rock-types, but I don't think it'll be enough. I've got a Pichu as well that I'm going to try and teach Volt Tackle to, but he probably won't be able to fight at all against Brock's team. And there aren't really any Pokemon around Viridian or Pewter City that really have a fighting chance against them, either. The bugs in Viridian Forest would get squashed by rock-types."

Giovanni smirked. "An accurate assessment, particularly in regards to the bug-types."

Ash wasn't really sure how to reply to that, but Giovanni kept talking. "You are correct in your analysis—your team clearly stands at a disadvantage against rock-types. Even if Charmander perfected Metal Claw at its current stage in training, it would not be enough to conquer Brock. His Geodude would likely fall to your Pokemon, but he uses an Onix as well."

That made Ash gulp. Onix were gargantuan rock-types with hard stone armor covering their entire bodies. Even though they had plenty of weaknesses, a well-trained Onix handled by an experienced trainer like Brock was a threat to be feared.

Giovanni was right. Charmander might be able to beat something as small as a Geodude with Metal Claw, but an Onix was entirely out of the question. He would probably just annoy the behemoth before getting crushed in the rock serpent's stone coils.

Ash deflated once he realized that. "I guess I'll just have to pass up Brock and go to Cerulean City for my first badge. Pichu will probably evolve by then and I could catch a water-type to beat Brock when I go back to Pewter City."

"That is a reasonable plan," Giovanni agreed. He was quiet for a bit, then spoke again. "Although…"

Before he could say another word, the overhead speakers beeped and Nurse Joy's voice echoed throughout the Pokemon Center. "Ash Ketchum, your Pokemon are waiting for you at the front desk."

Ash stood up and excused himself politely. "Sorry, I have to go get my team."

"It's quite alright," Giovanni replied. "It _is_ about time I headed back to the Gym."

The boy nodded and walked to the front desk to retrieve his healed team. Giovanni quietly followed.

* * *

"Thanks a lot, Nurse," Ash said gratefully as he released Pichu from his confines. He knew the electric mouse would be annoyed with being in the Poke Ball before too long. Pichu shook himself once he was released and immediately hopped onto his trainer's shoulder, smiling cheerily.

Joy smiled at him. "You're welcome, Ash. They should be good to go for the trek through Viridian Forest, as well. Just make sure you're stocked on Antidotes and Potions. Poison is a constant problem because of all the bug Pokemon."

He nodded. "I'll remember that. By the way, I was wondering—"

Suddenly the lights cut out and Ash's question died in his throat. He and Joy both looked around, confused. The boy frowned. "A power outage?"

"That doesn't make sense," Joy replied, glancing towards the glass doors of the Pokemon Center. "The lights for the rest of the city are still active. But our generator wouldn't just cut like this unless someone turned it off…"

The Nurse suddenly paled and whipped around towards the back of the building, where the Pokemon storage was. "It's those thieves again! They cut the power to get past the electronic lock!"

Before Ash could react, the glass doors at the front shattered. He spun around with wide eyes to find three figures standing in the rubble. It was a man, a woman, and a small, feline Pokemon he recognized as a Meowth. The two people wore white uniforms with a large red "R" on the front of their shirts. Ash realized it was the symbol for Team Rocket.

Joy's eyes narrowed. "You three are awfully bold breaking in here while I'm still on duty!"

"Oh, please," the woman drawled. "You and that pink egg are about as threatening as an angry Caterpie. You're taught to heal, not fight."

Her male partner smirked. "Now, hand over the Pokemon in the storage room and no one has to get hurt. Little boy, you will be handing yours over as well. It wouldn't do for you to interfere with our work."

Ash glared at them. "I refuse."

"Huh, the twerp's got some backbone," the Meowth sneered. "I think he needs a lesson in pain."

Normally, Ash would have been utterly surprised that a Pokemon had spoken like a human, but he had more important things on his mind. He grabbed Pyro's Poke Ball and released the fire-type, then glanced at Pichu. "Get in there, buddy. We'll fight them off."

Pichu leapt down from his shoulder and landed beside Pyro, his cheeks sparking. Pyro glared at the thieves and swished his burning tail aggressively, a hiss rising in his throat.

"Oh? They aren't rare, but those are uncommon Pokemon," the man mused. "Now we'll definitely have to take them. Shall we?"

The woman nodded and released an average Ekans. The serpent hissed and eyed its prey with pale yellow orbs. It didn't look evil, but it was obviously ready to fight. The Koffing which was sent out beside it looked the same way.

Ash looked at his opponents and ran everything he knew about them through his head. Unfortunately, it wasn't much. Ekans and Koffing were both poison-types. Alone, they weren't especially powerful, but in numbers they could be dangerous. Ekans was fast and used bites in order to attack. Koffing could smash its tough body into foes and expelled a stinking toxic gas. It also had the ability to use Self-Destruct once it was well trained. Ash didn't think this Koffing looked strong enough for that, but he didn't really want to risk that either.

He muttered lowly to Pyro and Pichu. "Keep your distance and feel them out with Ember and Thunder Shock. Pyro, you're the main force here. If they get close, hit them with Scratch or Metal Claw. Pichu, run around them and keep jolting those two. Try and paralyze them."

His Pokemon nodded and tensed as Ekans and Koffing began to approach. The woman, who apparently was the leader of the group, shouted at Ash. "Last chance, kid! Obey your elders like a good little boy and hand over your Pokemon, or you will regret it!"

Ignoring her, Ash initiated the fight. "Attack!"

Pyro immediately spat flames at Ekans while Pichu unleashed an electrical shock. The snake quickly slithered away and avoided its enemy's moves, hissing angrily. Koffing just tanked the shock, but winced. Ash grinned when it showed visible pain. Training with Pichu all afternoon had paid off.

Ekans darted towards Pyro with its mouth agape. The Charmander spat flames until the last second, then leapt out of the way and slashed at the poison-type with Metal Claw. He scored a hit on the thin scales, causing it to wriggle away quickly. Ekans retreated and shifted into a coil, hissing while Pyro growled.

Pichu was running circles around Koffing as he dodged its clumsy Tackles, stopping now and then to shoot off a Thunder Shock. The mouse wrinkled his nose in disgust whenever Koffing got too close—those fumes almost had Ash gagging even at this distance. But Koffing couldn't hit the faster and more agile electric-type, so it was on the losing side of the battle. Apparently, the Rockets agreed.

"The mouse is annoying," snarled the woman. "Ekans, help Koffing squash it!"

The snake spun towards the fighting pair and made to spring at Pichu, but Ash wasn't having it. "Pyro, pin it down!"

Ekans hissed furiously as the Charmander leapt onto the back of its scaly neck and smacked it against the ground. Pyro gripped the snake firmly by using Metal Claw to dig into its scales. It kept him from sliding off and out of range from Ekans' furious bites. The female thief screamed furiously at her Pokemon, but Pyro was far too stubborn to shake off. Meanwhile, Pichu jolted Koffing again with Thunder Shock, this time slowing it down a bit as paralysis began to take hold.

Ash grinned. He had them on the ropes. But his smile faded a moment later when he realized something.

Meowth was missing.

He glanced around frantically to locate the cat and found it trying to sneak past the fighting Pokemon. Ash narrowed his eyes at the mocking glee Meowth exuded. Obviously, the thieving cat thought it was clever by trying to steal while he was preoccupied fighting. That irritated Ash more than he was entirely happy about, so he watched the battle a second longer to ensure his Pokemon were okay for the moment before taking the matter of Meowth into his own hands.

The cat was watching the fight while it snuck around the edge of the center and never saw Ash coming.

Meowth yowled when a well-aimed kick from Ash punted it clean across the room and right into the female Rocket's face. The cat was so shocked that it'd been caught and repelled that it forgot to sheathe its claws, which had come out as a reflex of being attacked. Its partner shrieked as Meowth's own claws dug into her skin.

The woman scrambled to get the feline off of her and only made matters worse by startling Meowth even further. Her male partner just watched, dumbfounded by what was happening. Even their Pokemon stopped to just stare in utter bewilderment. The pause gave Pyro and Pichu a chance to catch their breath and get ready for the next stage of the fight.

Ash smirked as the woman finally pulled Meowth off of her and stared at the boy. Her face was all scratched up, red and puffy and her shocked expression quickly became furious.

"You little _shit!_ We'll see if you're smirking when I get my claws on your face!"

Ekans and Koffing prepared themselves to attack and Ash got ready to react and give his team orders. But just as the poison-types lunged, a flash of white light burst through the dark room.

Ash yelped as a tremor went through the ground and he scrambled to keep his balance. When he looked up to see what had caused it, any and all thoughts of battle left his head.

The biggest Pokemon he'd ever seen was standing in the middle of the room, pinning the now unconscious Ekans and Koffing down with stone arms as thick as tree trunks. Two large drills rested on its head and the entirety of its grey body was covered in thick red plates of armor. A long tail with a heavy club on the end was responsible for the tremor, cracks spreading along the floor like spider webs where it had crushed the ground.

Ash had no idea what it was, but he was more concerned about where it had come from. He spun towards Nurse Joy, but she just had her hands over her mouth to cover up her shock. They got their answer when a deep voice cut the stunned silence.

"That's quite enough of that."

Giovanni stepped out from the shadows with a stern expression. He stared at the Rockets and growled menacingly. _"Out."_

That one word was plenty to get the message across. The Rockets quickly recalled their unconscious Pokemon and ran so fast out of the building that Ash thought even an Arcanine would have trouble catching them. They were certainly quick on their feet, he'd give them that.

Giovanni's massive Pokemon let out a rumbling sound which made him jump as it turned to look at its trainer. The Gym Leader nodded to the behemoth. "Good work, Rhyperior."

Rhyperior snorted and turned to eye Ash and his comparatively tiny Pokemon. Pyro and Pichu did their best not to cringe under the stone giant's crimson eyes, but it made its judgement quickly and proceeded to simply ignore them.

Nurse Joy was still pale, though she managed to find her voice. "Mr. Giovanni, I didn't know you were still here…"

"I was actually just leaving when the power went out," he grunted. "The League ordered me to deal with those thieves personally if I ever encountered them. Though I must say, I'm fairly certain given how weak they were that Ash here could have run them off without my help. I only stepped in to settle the matter slightly faster."

Joy nodded. "Thank you very much for protecting the Pokemon Center. And you as well, Ash. Your quick thinking probably just saved dozens of Pokemon."

"We didn't do much. We just kept them busy," Ash replied, still staring at the behemoth with wide eyes. The huge Pokemon glanced at him momentarily, but it was utterly impassive. It was uncomfortable to see such a creature with little to no emotion like that. Rhyperior just looked bored.

Giovanni noted the exchange and looked at Ash pointedly. "You don't give yourself enough credit. Even though you've only trained your Pokemon for a few days, they reacted well to this battle. I was impressed. They got out of the fight without so much as a scratch."

He smirked then. "And you showed plenty of willingness to jump into the fight yourself. I can't say I've ever seen anyone reckless enough to try and kick an enemy Pokemon across the room."

Heat surged through Ash and he glanced at the floor. "Pyro and Pichu were busy fighting, so…"

"It was quick thinking and it worked. Just don't make a habit of it," Giovanni told him. The Gym Leader then looked at Joy. "I believe calling the police would be appropriate, although I'm certain the commotion will bring them here in a matter of minutes. I doubt the thieves will return. However, I shall remain here until the officers arrive."

"Thank you. Excuse me, I need to go turn on the backup generator," she replied and quickly strode off. Chansey, who had been hiding behind the desk during the event, scurried after her.

Ash found himself once again drawn to the massive form of Rhyperior. The nine-foot tall stone beast was now lazily spinning its drills. Giovanni saw Ash's interest and commented on it. "You seem impressed by Rhyperior."

"Yes, sir," the boy answered. "I've heard of them before and Professor Oak let us see a Rhydon once, but I've never gotten to see a Rhyperior in person. It's…it's huge."

"He's actually a fair bit bigger than the average Rhyperior," Giovanni admitted. "Most of the breed top out at eight feet tall. He's nearly ten. Heavier and slower, perhaps, but Rhyperior really have no need for speed of any kind as long as they have strong armor."

"I see," Ash murmured. Rhyperior spun his drill again and growled deeply.

Giovanni recalled the huge Pokemon and put the Poke Ball away. "He prefers to stay in suspended animation outside of combat and training."

Ash nodded in understanding. Professor Oak had a few Pokemon like that.

Several minutes later, the police arrived and took over the situation. Power was quickly restored to the Pokemon Center and Ash felt even more exhausted after the raid by Team Rocket. His eyes were closing against his will.

Giovanni seemed to tell the boy was about to crash and grunted. "Get to your room, Ash. Get some sleep. Come by my gym tomorrow morning."

Ash was too tired to ask why and simply turned away with a mumbled, "goodnight." He led Pyro and Pichu to his room in the Pokemon Center and fell asleep the second he hit the bed.

* * *

The next morning, Ash found himself in front of the Viridian City Gym. He stared at the imposing building and swallowed. Why did Giovanni want to see him again? Hesitantly, he knocked on the huge doors and they opened automatically. Ash walked inside and relaxed a bit once he saw Giovanni standing alone in the middle of the large room that took up most of the gym.

Giovanni looked completely unaffected by the events of the night before as he looked the younger trainer over. "Good morning, Ash. I expect you're wondering why I wanted you here."

"Yes, sir," Ash replied.

"Good. The reason I requested your presence was to engage you in a battle."

Ash froze. "Wait, what?"

Giovanni smirked. "Relax, boy. I'm not talking about an actual gym battle. We won't really be fighting. It'll be more of a test than anything for you. Call out your Charmander."

Still uncertain what to make of the situation, Ash set Pyro loose and Pichu leapt down from his shoulder to watch. The two little Pokemon gazed up at the Gym Leader curiously, recognizing him from the night before. Giovanni inspected them with measuring eyes and pulled out a Poke Ball of his own.

"Most of my Pokemon don't play well with others, particularly Rhyperior or Nidoking. But this one is the most mellow of my main team," Giovanni explained as he tapped the release and unleashed the Pokemon from its confines.

Ash's eyes widened at the large Nidoqueen that appeared. She was a lot smaller than Rhyperior's sheer bulk, but held an air of royalty and power that Rhyperior simply didn't possess. Nidoqueen was slightly taller than Giovanni and looked at Ash and his Pokemon curiously. He felt more relaxed around her than he had with Rhyperior. She seemed more prone to showing her emotions. It made it easier for him to tell what she was thinking.

"Nidoqueen is going to humor you," Giovanni explained, folding his arms behind his back. "None of your attacks now will scratch her, but I'd like to see you give your best effort. Understand this—power can only get you so far. Without knowledge and control, it is meaningless. Now, you may begin whenever you're ready. Nidoqueen will wait for you."

Ash didn't have the foggiest idea where to begin. Pyro's Metal Claw wouldn't pierce her thick armor at his current level and Ember _might_ warm her up a bit. He thought as quickly as he could before deciding to take a risk. "Dragon Dance."

Pyro squeezed his eyes shut and tensed, focusing energy in the core of his body. It took nearly twenty seconds for it to show any kind of effect, however, and obviously wouldn't be useful in any real battle Pyro participated in at this stage. Ash had to risk it, though—without some kind of boost to Pyro's attack, he wouldn't be able to even make Nidoqueen twitch.

Giovanni nodded approvingly. "A good start, though you obviously lack training for such a technique. What will you do next?"

Ash knew exactly what he was going to do. "Metal Claw. Don't stop."

Pyro rushed Nidoqueen, slightly faster thanks to the weak Dragon Dance, and began to slash at her legs. He darted around and scratched with his metallic claws wherever he could touch the much larger Pokemon. At one point, Pyro even used Nidoqueen's tail as a platform to jump high and scratch at her face, though she just snorted in amusement.

The Charmander was beginning to look rather frustrated, but Ash called out to him. "Keep at it, Pyro! Just keep using Metal Claw."

"You may consider a different strategy. Only using one move isn't going to increase your chances."

"Metal Claw will," Ash replied, garnering a raised eyebrow from the Earth Master. He saw a glimmer of light as the glow of Metal Claw increased. "It's attacks can get stronger the more we strike."

The Gym Leader's mouth twitched, though he didn't seem too surprised. "I see. It's a decent plan. However…"

Giovanni's smirk returned. "How will you deal with Nidoqueen once she starts to move?"

At his cue, the matriarch let out a bellow and a shockwave blew Pyro away. Ash's partner hit the ground with a yelp and scrabbled back to his feet. Nidoqueen took a step forward and swept her tail towards the Charmander, but Pyro dodged by jumping up and clinging to the thick appendage.

"Ember!" Ash shouted.

Pyro growled and spat little flames over Nidoqueen's back, but she just huffed, not even annoyed, and made a swift turn. Her smaller opponent was hurled from her spine and hit the ground roughly. Despite the tough landing, Pyro got back up and stubbornly hissed at his behemoth foe.

Nidoqueen made a rumble that caused the ground at her feet to quake. Pyro almost lost his footing and staggered back from her, looking hesitant for the first time since the fight began. The matriarch lifted her chin and looked down on the tiny lizard, a silent command in her stern eyes that demanded respect.

Pyro was stubborn, but he wasn't stupid. He quieted his growl and bowed his head. Nidoqueen snorted in what might have been approval.

Ash blinked. He didn't understand what had just happened.

Giovanni broke the silence. "You have talent, but it's obvious you have a lot to learn. The wise decision would have been to recall Charmander the moment Nidoqueen began to move. Your Pokemon realized that before you did."

He opened his mouth to reply, then closed it. Giovanni made a good point. Nidoqueen had played possum for a while so that Pyro could attack, but the second she got into the fight it was over. There was just no way for him to inflict any kind of damage on the massive poison and ground-type.

"A strong, trained Pokemon can take a good deal more punishment than those as young as your Charmander or Pichu," the Gym Leader continued. "At their current level, it would be best not to let them take inordinate amounts of damage from far stronger adversaries. Serious injuries could result in problems later when they evolve. Do not be foolish enough to risk that."

Giovanni recalled Nidoqueen and looked at the boy. "You must not fight so rigidly, either. Against a foe with such a vast difference in experience, no manner of head-on attack is going to have an effect. Think outside the confines of what seems to be possible and impossible. Improvise. But do not act stupidly."

He took out a new Poke Ball and held it out. "Take this."

Ash stared at the ball and carefully took it from Giovanni. He looked it over curiously. "What's in it?"

"A Sandile," Giovanni informed him. "A ground-type. Obviously, a specialty of mine. You could make greater use of it than I. My team already has plenty of power, and this one requires time to train that I simply do not have. If you work hard with it, I believe it could be of use in your battle against Brock at Pewter City."

"You're just giving it to me?" Ash asked hesitantly. "I've never even _heard_ of Sandile before. Is it rare?"

"You won't find it in Kanto," Giovanni agreed. "But it's rather common in the deserts of the Unova region. A well trained Sandile and its evolved forms are useful assets for any trainer. They typically are not easy to work with, but I think you might be talented enough to handle it with time and training. I suggest you research it extensively. You'll need a firm understanding of their species if you're to properly work with their adult forms."

"Why's that?"

"Uncontrollable aggression is a common trait as they mature. You'll understand in time."

The words "uncontrollable aggression" made Ash certain this was going to take a lot of research and hard work. He wouldn't open that Poke Ball until he felt like he could handle Sandile safely. Even if it wasn't yet fully grown, that did not necessarily make it easy to work with or tame in his book. Ash didn't even have the foggiest idea what a Sandile _looked_ like.

Still, he was grateful for it and wasn't about to turn it down.

"Thank you very much, sir," Ash dipped his head politely.

Giovanni nodded back. "You may thank me when that Sandile proves to be useful. Now, you'd best get going. There's plenty of daylight left for trekking through Viridian Forest and I have a meeting in ten minutes. Farewell, Mr. Ketchum."

Ash took his leave quickly, pocketing Sandile's Poke Ball and recalling Pyro. Pichu climbed back onto his shoulder and the boy left the Viridian Gym without another word.

He felt the Gym Leader's eyes boring into his back right until the door closed behind him.

* * *

He pulled out his Pokedex again before leaving for the Viridian Forest. It was the last obstacle before Pewter City and frankly his only opportunity to give Pyro, Pichu and the newly-acquired Sandile experience in battle. If Ash was going to use the ground-type in his battle against Brock, he had to train with it to get an idea of its capabilities. Holding up Sandile's Poke Ball to the Pokedex, he let the scan feature activate and waited patiently as the computer retrieved and recited the data to him.

_Sandile, the Desert Croc Pokemon. It moves along the desert just below the surface of the sand, except for its nose and eyes. A dark membrane shields its eyes from the sun. Female Sandile bask together in sunlight to warm up their bodies every morning. Male Sandile fight each other by inflicting vicious bites to show their dominance. Trainers must exercise caution when handling this Pokemon._

_This Sandile is male and knows the moves: Bite, Dig, Sand Tomb, Leer, Fire Fang, and Thunder Fang. Its ability is Moxie, which boosts Sandile's attack power in battle every time it defeats an opponent. Warning: Sandile with this ability can be highly volatile._

Ash groaned. Sandile had every bad trait its species was known for—it was male, for one. Apparently, that made him more aggressive than the _supposedly_ more mellow females. He also had the Moxie ability that, together with his gender, actually warranted a warning from the Pokedex. Ash would not be forgetting that anytime soon.

He also didn't realize until now that Sandile was a dark-type in addition to being a ground-type. That only made matters worse. Dark-types commonly had highly aggressive behaviors or negative dispositions compared to other Pokemon. There was just something about them that didn't mesh well with others. Of course, not all dark-types were like that, and there were a fair few (Umbreon, for example) that did quite well around people and other Pokemon. It seemed to just be a matter of which species to watch out for.

Ash had no doubt Sandile and its evolutionary line were high up on that list. If they were so violent with members of their own kind, he could only imagine what they were like around people or other Pokemon.

Still, if he didn't meet Sandile, Ash would feel as though he was being unfair towards him. So just before they set out for the forest, Ash set Pyro loose and let Pichu hop off his shoulder. He crouched in front of them and fondly scratched the pair on their heads before talking.

"Listen, I want to try and get along with the Sandile Giovanni gave me, okay? But I don't know if he'll be aggressive or not. So I need you two with me, just in case he gets snappy. Don't attack him when he appears and do your best to look friendly. If he attacks, stay away from his jaws—that'll really hurt."

His two friends nodded, so Ash pulled out Sandile's Poke Ball. He took a deep breath and tapped the release, unleashing its contents.

The Pokemon that materialized following the white flash of light was the color of sand, with a few thick, black stripes along its top jaw, midsection, and tail. Its eyes were jet black and gleamed beneath the dark visor that had evolved to protect Sandile's eyes from the harsh desert sun. It stood on four short, stubby legs and for the most part, didn't look too threatening.

That is, until Sandile opened his jaws in a yawn, gaping nearly ninety degrees to flash rows of white fangs. Ash blinked when he realized that Sandile's head and mouth took up nearly a third of his total body size. That was…kind of ridiculous.

Sandile peered up at him with a curious expression. Ash decided to introduce himself. "Hey, Sandile. Are you feeling good?"

The croc considered that for a moment before shrugging. He looked over Pyro and Pichu, then back to Ash, who crouched down to avoid looking like a threat.

"My name is Ash. This is Pyro, and that's Pichu," he gestured to each of his Pokemon in turn. Pyro waved his stubby arm and Pichu squeaked politely. Ash went on. "Listen, I'd really like you to travel with me. I'm traveling with Pyro and Pichu to become the greatest Pokemon Master in the world, so I'll need a team of the best Pokemon out there working with me. If you decide to travel with us, I promise I'll train you into the strongest Krookodile that there is."

Sandile's eyes gleamed at the prospect. Ash had his attention now. He was just glad he remembered the name of Sandile's final evolution from his brief glance at it in the Pokedex. Ash wanted to get across to Sandile that he knew what he was doing, so he could better earn the ground-type's friendship and respect.

"What do you think, Sandile? Would you like to come with us?"

The croc thought about it a moment longer before nodding. Ash smiled at him. This was easier than he'd thought it would be. Maybe Sandile wasn't going to be as aggressive as he'd feared.

"Would you like a nickname? Pyro has one. Pichu didn't want one, but it's up to you."

Sandile seemed to ponder that and eventually emitted a crooning sound by causing his jaws to shiver. Ash took that as a yes and thought about it. He would admit he'd had trouble thinking of names for Sandile off the top of his head, so had cheated a little by looking up acceptable nicknames for crocodile-like Pokemon. Only one had really stood out to him, but would Sandile like it?

"How about Sobek?"

Sandile bared his many sharp teeth in a fierce mockery of a smile. Ash grinned. It seemed as though the ground-type agreed it was a good name.

Sobek it was.

Ash didn't get a chance to think any further as the newly dubbed Sobek stepped forward on his short, stubby legs and brushed the tip of his nose against the boy's leg. He froze, uncertain as to what the ground-type was trying to do. The Sandile's throat vibrated again and the resulting sound was almost…relaxing.

Hesitantly, Ash reached up and carefully set his hand against Sobek's head, feeling the tough, firm scales under his fingers. Sobek's only reaction was to (for lack of a better word) purr even more.

He frowned briefly. The Pokedex was completely inaccurate for this particular specimen of Sandile, it seemed. He…wasn't sure if that was a good sign or not. Sure, he'd much rather have a calm Pokemon than one with uncontrollable rage, but this was pushing it given the reputation of the Sandile line. He made a mental note to ask Professor Oak about Sobek at some point.

Ash stroked Sobek's scales again and turned his frown upside down. He and Sobek were getting along, and that was the best he could ask for right now. "Listen Sobek, I'm going to recall you now. We're about to go through a big forest. There will probably be a lot of trainers in there, so I'll probably call on you at some point to battle. Is that okay?"

Sobek grinned toothily again and nodded. Ash felt more relaxed seeing the Sandile's eagerness to fight—maybe his aggression would come out more during combat. If Sobek had even a touch of his breed's typical fury, the place to see it would be in a battle.

"Alright. I'll let you out as soon as I can, Sobek. Rest up."

Ash recalled the Sandile and let out a sigh of relief. That had gone well. Pyro and Pichu both made small noises to get his attention and he was pleased to see they both looked happy.

"Well, you guys know the plan. Hop on, Pichu. We've got a forest to get through."

His Pokemon chirped and squeaked agreement. Ash grinned, recalling Pyro as Pichu hopped onto his shoulder and started walking towards the vast green curtain that was Viridian Forest.

* * *

Their first day of trekking through Viridian Forest saw a lot of action. Ash must have battled a dozen trainers, all of them bug catchers. Each and every one of them was using freshly caught bug-types from the surrounding woods, except for a couple that seemed to actually train the bugs they captured.

Pyro, Pichu, and Sobek all saw a good bit of action. Pyro could torch the bug-types with ease, but his flames were getting stronger and stronger every time he won a battle. It was at the point where lesser bug-types like Caterpie and Weedle would get knocked out by a single Ember. Even the chrysalis stages Metapod and Kakuna were wiped out quickly before long.

The only Pokemon he'd battled thus far that had given him a hint of trouble was a Butterfree, and even then Pyro had won by shooting the bug out of the sky with Ember. His tail flame was starting to get hotter and Ash could see a faint trace of red in his scales, signaling that Pyro was getting closer to evolving.

Pichu had made a great amount of progress as well. Ash only used him to battle the weaker bugs, (he still wasn't strong enough to take on something like a Butterfree or Beedrill) but took the opportunity to try and get Pichu started on Volt Tackle. The easiest way to start was by having Pichu just Tackle his opponents while using Thunder Shock. It was an effective combination anyway, but hopefully it would start to channel electricity into the secondary charge organ that was necessary to learn Volt Tackle.

But Sobek saw the most use, especially after Ash battled with him the first time. In battle, Sobek wasn't especially fast, but his biting attacks instantly defeated pretty much everything he met. He didn't waste the croc's time against Caterpie and Weedle (though that was mostly because he was afraid Sobek might fatally injure them) and tested his power against Metapod and Kakuna instead. Their shells could stand up to the bites, though they fainted immediately after taking one or two of the attacks. Those battles weren't where Sobek truly stood out.

No, where Sobek had impressed Ash was when he snagged an enemy Beedrill out of the air with Fire Fang and knocked it out by shaking it ruthlessly. The ground-type had finished off the strongest Pokemon they had encountered in the forest thus far in a grand total of ten seconds. Ash could see the aggression he had been warned about when Sobek fought, but he mellowed quickly when he wasn't fighting. He felt much better about the Sandile's health now that he'd seen the sheer fury Sobek tapped into when he was in combat.

By the time the sun began to set, Ash had covered only about a third of the forest. He had been slowed down by all the battles, but was in no mood to complain. On the contrary, he couldn't stop smiling. His Pokemon had gotten a good deal stronger by constantly fighting the bug catchers. They'd also been fortunate enough to avoid getting poisoned.

Ash set his team loose once he found a decent spot to make camp for the night. Pyro smiled happily upon seeing him again, though Sobek blinked in confusion when he found there wasn't a fight to be had.

"We're about to sleep for the night," Ash explained to the croc. Sobek blinked and nodded in understanding, so he pressed on. "I usually set everyone loose at night so that you can enjoy the fresh air. Would you like that, or would you prefer staying in your Poke Ball?"

Sobek snorted and immediately found a patch of ground to dig a shallow hole into. The ground-type nestled himself into the small ditch with his head exposed, allowing him to keep an eye on Ash and the others, but he seemed content to close his eyes and fall asleep quickly. Ash smiled at his newest partner.

He got his sleeping bag out and made himself comfortable. Once Ash was settled, Pichu crawled onto his stomach as usual and Pyro curled up beside him, careful to keep his tail flame away from anything flammable.

Ash slipped into a peaceful slumber before long, tired out by the day's events and all they had accomplished.

* * *

His awakening was not so pleasant.

Ash felt something cold touch his throat and frowned as the sensation woke him up. He blinked and froze immediately. Above him was a figure clad in strange armor, holding a katana to his neck. Pyro, Pichu, and Sobek were all still asleep.

"Are you from Pallet Town?" The intruder asked quietly.

Ash kept his eyes on the sword at his throat and nodded shortly, scarcely remembering to breathe. The figure's eyes flashed and he raised his voice. "I was defeated by a trainer from Pallet Town once! Now face me in battle so I may redeem myse—AGH!"

His scream was caused by a rush of sand scales and a furious hiss. Sobek had woken because of the intruder's raised voice and immediately attacked when he saw that his trainer was in danger. The Sandile's jaws snapped shut on the sword, yanking it away from Ash and then ripping it from the intruder's hands. Sobek glared furiously at the intruder with the sword still in his jaws. His jaws clenched tightly and the blade snapped like a twig.

The commotion brought Pyro and Pichu out of their sleep and they immediately got between Ash and the intruder. Pyro and Sobek were hissing aggressively and Pichu's cheeks sparked with electricity. Ash quickly got up to call them off before they could seriously hurt the guy.

"Hey, hey, it's alright, guys! Settle down! He just wants to have a battle!"

They didn't really settle down, but his Pokemon didn't attack, either. Ash figured they would control themselves for now and glared at the intruder, who he realized now was a boy barely taller than himself.

"What's wrong with your Pokemon?!" The kid exclaimed furiously. "It just up and attacked me out of the blue! It even broke my precious katana!"

"What's wrong with _my_ Pokemon? What's wrong with _you?!"_ Ash snapped back. "What kind of idiot wakes up a guy with a sword at his throat? Did you think my Pokemon wouldn't try to defend me when they saw you doing that? You're lucky Sobek didn't take your hand off!"

The kid reddened with anger and grabbed a Poke Ball. "I am Samurai. I challenge you and that little monster of yours to battle. My Pokemon and I shall regain my honor!"

"Pyro, Pichu, step back," Ash ordered, still furious. "Sobek, get ready. We're going to crush whatever bug he's got and get out of here."

Sobek hissed agreement. After Pyro and Pichu moved back to stand beside Ash, Samurai walked off a few paces and then spun around to face him. He threw the Poke Ball and yelled. "Pinsir, to battle!"

Ash blinked in surprise when the Stag Beetle Pokemon appeared. He hadn't expected to see a Pinsir in this forest, even if the only trainers here used bug-types. Pinsir were rare and notoriously aggressive. Ash kind of doubted the kid was a skilled trainer, but the sight of Pinsir gave him pause.

"Watch out for those claws on its head," Ash muttered to Sobek. "If it gets too close, try to bite one and smack it around."

The Sandile's hiss rose in pitch. Evidently, he was more than ready to beat the piss and vinegar out of this bug. He certainly wasn't fazed by it, even if Ash was being more cautious.

Samurai struck first. "Pinsir, attack! Use Vicegrip!"

Pincer menacingly clicked its pincers together and began to stalk towards Sobek. It was fairly slow, so Ash had plenty of time to respond.

"Dig. Trap it with Sand Tomb," he ordered.

Sobek quickly dug underground. That was something Ash had noticed about the Sandile after all the battles they'd fought yesterday. He wasn't especially fast on the surface except for short bursts, but he could practically swim through the earth. Underground was where he was at home, and his strikes were far quicker when they came from below an enemy's feet.

Pincer paused after seeing its prey disappear and looked around dumbly. Samurai yelled at Ash. "Hey! That's an underhanded tactic! You have no honor!"

"It's completely fair and I'm pretty sure Pinsir can learn Dig too," Ash retorted. "Maybe you should train your Pokemon better."

Samurai looked furious, but didn't get another word in as Pinsir suddenly sunk into the ground at its feet. It clicked its claws frantically and struggled to escape Sand Tomb.

Ash liked this particular combination. Sobek would use Dig to get beneath an enemy, homing in on the vibrations they produced through his sensitive crocodilian nose, then used Sand Tomb to weaken the earth they stood on and trap them. The move could immobilize pretty much anything that didn't fly and the heavier the target, the more effective it was. It essentially turned the ground their foes stood on into quicksand.

He had been thinking about just shortening the combo's name to Ant Pit, after a type of desert Pokemon that trapped its prey in an identical manner. It seemed appropriate, although there was one more step before the move was actually complete in his eyes.

With Pinsir trapped in the sand, Ash ordered Sobek to complete the process. "Bite!"

Pinsir made a shrieking sound as Sobek erupt from the quicksand around it and snapped his fangs into the bug's midsection. The Sandile's powerful jaw muscles punched right through the armored carapace.

"No! Pinsir, shake it off!" Samurai commanded frantically.

Ash was impressed that Pinsir still had fight in it. The bug was obviously at a low level and had probably only hatched a short while ago. Looking at it, it _was_ a fair bit smaller than the description of Pinsir in the Pokedex. Even so, Pinsir were tough to knock out. Ash decided a follow up move was necessary.

"Fire Fang."

Sobek's jaws flickered with hot embers as he added fire-type elements to his assault. It was a move that Sobek still had to work on a lot—he couldn't generate much fire yet, but the heat and small embers that he _could_ produce would get the job done in this instance.

Sure enough, Pinsir tried to wriggle away from the heat furiously, but collapsed after just a few seconds. Samurai seemed utterly beside himself from the loss and recalled his Pokemon with a large frown.

"That was a dirty trick. Using super-effective moves is not an honorable way to battle!"

Ash shrugged. Samurai could keep his opinions, but fighting the way he had was strategic. He still had a long way to go in Viridian Forest and didn't want to risk Sobek getting injured by a potentially dangerous foe. Besides, the warrior-wannabe annoyed him.

Sobek looked at Ash now that the battle was over. Ash smiled and nodded. "Good work, Sobek. That was excellent."

His Pokemon grinned toothily, but turned back to glare at Samurai a moment later. The kid hadn't left yet.

Samurai glared at them. "I shall train harder, and if you should ever return to my forest again, I shall defeat you!"

Ash smirked. "I'm looking forward to it."

The kid practically growled at him and then stomped away into the trees, not even bothering to pick up the sword Sobek had destroyed. With their opponent gone, Ash's Pokemon relaxed.

"Alright guys," Ash turned back to their camp and went to grab the bags of Pokemon food in his bag. "Who wants breakfast?"

* * *

Ash and his team ended up spending two more days in Viridian Forest, battling many more opponents and the occasional wild Pokemon. They got some serious training and combat experience in that would no doubt be useful when it was time to face Brock in Pewter City.

Pyro had finally perfected Metal Claw. There weren't many rocks in Viridian Forest, but the armored bug-types they fought helped a lot, not to mention that Ash had the Charmander slashing at thick trees whenever they stopped to make camp. He had also tried working on Dragon Dance, but that was a completely different can of worms. Pyro still took about twenty seconds to actually build up enough dragon-type energy for the boost to take effect. It would probably get easier when he evolved, but it would still take a long time to master.

Pichu got a good bit stronger while in the forest. Right towards the end, Ash began to let the mouse battle against some of the stronger bugs they met. He was pleased when Pichu managed to take out a Venonat that belonged to one of the more skilled trainers. Pichu's electric attacks were becoming a lot more formidable as well. Ash was still having him work on using Thunder Shock and Tackle in tandem, hoping that it would be enough for Pichu to learn Volt Tackle before he evolved.

Sobek had easily mastered the Ant Pit combo Ash had him working on. It was instinctive for the Sandile to use anyways and quite effective against most terrestrial foes. He was glad Sobek had gotten used to battling with him while in the Viridian Forest, because Ash intended for the ground-type to be his trump card against Brock.

Sobek was Ash's only chance at defeating the Onix Giovanni had told him about. If he couldn't do it, then Ash would have no choice but to go to Cerulean City first and try to capture a water-type. It was going to be a trial by fire, but Ash had full confidence in his team.

The boy finally stepped out of the Viridian Forest immense tree line and grinned. He could see Pewter City's lights just a few miles away. The sun was still out, but Ash figured he would spend the rest of the day training once he actually made it to Pewter—he would challenge Brock tomorrow.

On his shoulder, Pichu nudged him to get moving. Ash smiled at the mouse and scratched his furry ears before turning towards Pewter and walking down the trail that would take them to their first gym battle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the foreseeable future, I plan on posting one chapter per week throughout the overhaul of this story. It will be a time-intensive process and I want to be able to dedicate more of my writing time to my other stories as well, so just bear with me as each update rolls out.
> 
> If anyone's confused about the tags, I'll be updating them with the content from each chapter, so as to surprise new readers here on ao3. You'll see what I mean as time goes on.
> 
> Enjoy the chapter!


	3. Stone Cold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ash faces off against Brock and makes a new rival.

_Chapter Three: Stone Cold_

"I need my Pokemon to be healed, please," Ash asked Nurse Joy politely. He placed Pyro and Sobek's Poke Balls on a tray as Pichu hopped off his shoulder. They had just finished their last bit of training for the day. Ash wanted them all rested up for the battle against Brock tomorrow.

Joy smiled back. "Of course. I'll have them ready for you shortly. In the meantime, please feel free to relax in the Pokemon Center."

"Thank you," he dipped his head and made for the room he'd be staying in while at Pewter City. Ash had eaten earlier and wanted to go over his strategy against Brock a few more times.

According to all the information he'd heard about the Pewter Gym Leader, Brock generally used the same two Pokemon when he battled new trainers—a Geodude and an Onix. Both were fairly low level, but Ash had no doubt they were seasoned fighters. He was pretty sure he had them covered, though. It was just a matter of which one Brock sent out first. Against Geodude Ash had full confidence that Pyro, through judicious use of Metal Claw, could pull through. As long as he could avoid getting hit by too many rock-type attacks, Pyro would win.

Onix was quite literally a far larger complication, but it had to have a weakness—there was no way the Indigo League would let Brock fight against fresh trainers with the stone behemoth unless they had a decent shot at defeating it. Ash figured that the best way he could defeat Onix was with Sobek.

His Ant Pit combo would be useful against a large opponent that had limited mobility to begin with. Once Sobek trapped Onix, it would just be a matter of time until the Sandile whittled their opponent's health to zero. With that said, Ash wanted to try and weaken the beast first by attacking it with Dig. He worried it might be able to escape if it wasn't tired out first. Or it might crush Sobek with its incredible weight.

He was as prepared as he could be for Brock. Ash felt like he had a fighting chance. He would win.

* * *

Ash stood in front of the Pewter Gym the next morning. The building looked old, but suited the rustic atmosphere the rest of the city possessed. Taking a deep breath, the boy raised his hand and knocked on the doors a few times. Several seconds later, a buzzer sounded and the doors opened towards the inside.

He walked inside and found that the gym consisted of a simple battlefield covered in rocks and a series of stands in case someone else wanted to watch. Ash saw a dark-skinned figure walk out of another set of doors and stopped when the young man began to talk.

"Welcome to the Pewter City Gym. I assume you're here for a battle?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah. My name is Ash. I'm from Pallet Town."

"Nice to meet you," the teen replied. "I'm Brock. Are you ready to…oh? You brought someone with you?"

Ash frowned and turned, blinking in surprise when he saw another boy about his age walk through the doors. He had deep purple hair and intense dark eyes that bordered between stern and angry. Quite frankly, the expression didn't suit someone so young.

When Brock made his comments, the other boy looked across the field and shook his head. "I'm not with him. I came here for a battle as well."

"I see," Brock nodded and gestured to the stands beside the rocky battlefield. "Well, feel free to watch. Forrest!"

At his call, a boy that looked very similar to Brock hurried out of the same door the Gym Leader had come from. He quickly ran to the referee post between either side of the field and cleared his throat. "This gym battle will now commence. Both sides will use only two Pokemon and the battle will be over when either side is unable to continue. Furthermore, there will be no substitutions. The challenger will have the first attack. Send out your Pokemon!"

Brock threw a Poke Ball onto the field and just as Ash had expected, a Geodude appeared. The rock-type was little more than a round boulder with two strong arms that it used to hold itself up. Going according to plan, Ash grabbed Pyro's Poke Ball and loosed his starter.

The Charmander appeared and spat a few embers into the air. He caught sight of Geodude and hissed aggressively, though the rock-type looked utterly unfazed by the fire lizard. As the trainers prepared themselves, Pichu leaped down from Ash's shoulder to stand beside him and watch. The little mouse was trembling eagerly—he couldn't wait to see how the fight would unfold. In the stands, the trainer that had arrived after Ash sat down and paid rapt attention.

Forrest slashed his hand down. "Charmander versus Geodude—begin!"

"Rush it," Ash ordered.

Pyro began to run towards Geodude, giving no hint as to which attack he would be using. That was part of Ash's plan—he didn't want to alert Brock to the knowledge that Pyro could use Metal Claw until his Pokemon was actually close enough to use it. If he gave away his trump card right off the bat, there was a chance that Brock would have Geodude fight from a distance, thus crushing any hope Pyro had of defeating it.

Brock was no fool, though. "Geodude, Rock Throw!"

Geodude's strong hands crushed some of the stone field and then hurled the chunks at Pyro. Ash's Charmander quickly leapt aside, doing his best to avoid the rocks while continuing his charge. Geodude crushed more stones in his other hand and launched another Rock Throw, but now Pyro was close enough to attack.

"Metal Claw! Aim for its body!"

"Brace yourself—Defense Curl!"

Pyro's claws flashed a metallic silver as he ripped apart the Rock Throw to get at Geodude. The rock-type quickly wrapped itself into a ball, bracing itself just as Pyro slashed at it. Ash heard a grunt of pain from their opponent as it was sent rolling away into a nearby boulder, three distinct gashes along its rocky body.

Geodude unraveled itself, wincing after being hit by the super-effective move. Brock whistled. "That Charmander of yours is well-trained. Usually all the freshmen trainers we get with those lizards take a while for Geodude to feel their attacks."

"Thanks, but don't expect Pyro or I to let up on you for the kind words," Ash grinned back.

Brock smirked. "As if. Rollout!"

"Metal Claw! Knock it off balance!"

Geodude curled back up and spun with unexpected speed for such a heavy creature. Pyro only just managed to jump out of its way before it could smash into the fire-type and wasn't able to get in Metal Claw. Growling, Pyro waited as Geodude turned and made to charge him again, anticipating the timing better the second time around.

Ash was also keeping an eye out for the perfect moment to attack and called at the very last second. "Do it!"

Pyro leaped to the side, out of Geodude's path, and slashed the rock-type with Metal Claw while still in the air. Geodude let out a groaning sound and lost control, smashing into another boulder with a painful sounding impact. It tiredly pulled itself up and glared at Pyro.

It was ready to fall. Ash could see it from the way Geodude's arms struggled to hold up its heavy body. Just a little more, and Pyro could take it down.

"One more Metal Claw!" Ash exclaimed. "Finish it!"

Pyro lunged and slashed at Geodude again, but Brock suddenly barked. "Mega Punch!"

Ash's Charmander yelped as the heavy attack collided with Metal Claw and overpowered it, launching the fire lizard up into the air. Pyro hit the ground hard and scrambled back to his feet, wincing from the blow.

Ash grit his teeth. He hadn't really gotten the chance to work on Pyro's endurance yet, so most hits were going to hurt. He hadn't been aware that Geodude could use Mega Punch, but he was kicking himself for it now—Geodude's huge arms were perfect for punching attacks. It should have been obvious.

He decided to change tactics.

"Ember. Circle Geodude and keep it guessing."

Pyro swiftly went into action, running in a quick circle around the rock-type while spitting small flames. Geodude shrugged off the flames like they were nothing, but it had trouble keeping up with Pyro's quick movements while Ember blocked its vision.

Brock had evidently seen Ash's game before and gave another order. "Magnitude."

Ash's eyes widened. "Pyro, jump!"

He barely got the command out before Geodude used its strong arms to throw itself into the air, then smashed down on the field to unleash a small earth tremor. Pyro managed to avoid it by jumping over the ground-type move, but it forced him to stop running around.

"Geodude, one last Mega Punch!" Brock snapped.

Geodude propelled itself towards Pyro with its powerful arms and clenched a fist, ready to clobber the fire-type. However, just as it swung, the Charmander ducked under and caused Geodude to overextend. The rock-type clumsily tumbled over its opponent and landed heavily.

Ash knew Brock wasn't going to give him another opportunity. "Finish it!"

Pyro lunged at the stunned Geodude and slashed at it furiously with his metallic claws. Geodude scrambled to get away, but Pyro just snarled and dug his claws into it with one hand while continuing to tear through the rock-type's armor with his free limb.

Brock recalled Geodude when the stone creature stopped flailing around. He muttered something quietly to the Poke Ball and then looked up at Ash. "I'm impressed by your Charmander's perseverance. It managed to recover from Geodude's Mega Punch. That doesn't happen often."

"Thanks, but to be honest I'm just as surprised," Ash admitted. "I haven't really had much time to work on his defense yet."

Pyro snorted a small puff of smoke and grinned at his trainer. Ash smiled at him and nodded, pleased with his starter's hard work.

"You've done well with him thus far, I'll give you that," Brock praised as he unclipped a second Poke Ball from his belt. "That being said, you'll need more than brute force to beat my second Pokemon."

Ash's eyes narrowed. "Get ready Pyro. Here it comes."

Pyro let out a hiss and flexed his claws, ready for the second round of the gym battle.

"Rock and roll, Onix!" Brock hurled the Poke Ball up and it released its contents a second later.

A tremor went through the ground as a massive serpent of solid rock landed on the battlefield. Onix let out a bellow, a deep sound that reverberated through Ash's whole body. He stared at the behemoth with wide eyes. He'd looked Onix up in the Pokedex and knew that they were big, but reading about their gargantuan size and actually _seeing_ it in person were two very different things indeed.

Pyro was gazing up at his new opponent with narrowed eyes. He let out a barking sound that was probably the closest thing he could get to a roar in his current form. Onix snorted and looked down on the fire lizard with something along the lines of amusement.

Forrest looked from Ash to Brock and shouted. "Charmander versus Onix—begin!"

"Metal Claw," Ash ordered. "Use your speed to keep away from it and attack its flanks."

Pyro darted forward at his command and immediately hardened his claws. Onix watched him approach and let out another deep rumble.

Brock smiled. "Ash, one thing you should learn about gym battles is that the same tricks never work twice. Rock Polish and Bind it."

Onix's body suddenly glowed, blinding Ash for just a moment. When the light faded, Pyro was lunging in to slash at Onix, but the rock snake suddenly whipped away with speed that no creature of its size had the right to possess. Ash gaped as Onix bolted around Pyro, stunning the fire-type with its unexpected speed. It threw stone coils around the lizard and squeezed. Pyro let out a cry of pain as the Bind began to crush him.

He scowled. They were completely unprepared for Onix's speed. He had anticipated Onix to be a slow, lumbering behemoth that made up for that shortcoming with great attack and defense. That it could move so quickly threw a wrench in his plans to defeat it. Pyro had no way of escaping Bind, either. Fortunately, Onix hadn't been able to crush Pyro's arms too tightly to his body.

Ash saw the chance and he decided to go for it. "Use Metal Claw! Slash at it until it lets you go!"

Pyro had his fangs bared in pain, but he managed to harden his claws even as Onix squeezed tighter and furiously cut the stone behemoth's body. Onix winced in pain. So the stone armor wasn't completely full-proof. It was obvious that it would take dozens of Metal Claws for Pyro to have a chance at severely weakening the rock snake, but luckily it seemed like the move's attack boosting properties were starting to take effect. Now and again, Pyro's slashes would cut deeper into Onix, making it twitch uncomfortably and loosen its grip.

Brock must have seen it too, because he decided right then to end the fight. "Slam it!"

Onix roared and lifted the coiled tail which was bound around Pyro, then brought it down on the field like a hammer. Ash winced as the force made him unsteady and actually knocked Pichu off his feet beside him. The little mouse got up and stared at the debris cloud with wide eyes.

He wasn't surprised when the dust settled and Pyro was unconscious. Ash recalled his starter and gently ran his thumb over the Poke Ball. "You did great. I'm proud of you."

Ash took a look at Onix and smiled with satisfaction at the deep gouges in the stone behemoth's thick hide. It was clearly uncomfortable, but he wasn't sure how much more punishment it could take. Maybe this Onix was relatively young and had armor that was thinner than an adult's. That would explain why Brock used it for low-level gym battles.

He grabbed Sobek's Poke Ball and set the crocodilian loose. Sobek immediately locked his onyx eyes onto Onix and let out a ferocious hiss.

Brock looked surprised. "A Sandile? That's a rarity. I can't say I've ever actually seen one outside of my study book on Pokemon Breeding. Where did you get that?"

"He was a gift," Ash replied. "And he's already one of the best Pokemon in my team. Don't underestimate him, Brock."

Sobek hissed agreement, eyes gleaming eagerly to take on the mountainous serpent in front of him. Ash grinned at his excitement—he was pumped up too. The two of them were completely in sync for this fight.

Their opponent only had to look at Sobek's powerful jaws to take Ash up on his suggestion. "I don't think I'll be underestimating teeth like those. Slam!"

"Dig!" Ash ordered.

Sobek wriggled into the ground in the blink of an eye, just in time as Onix's tail came from the side and pulverized several boulders. Brock frowned. "Move around. Keep it guessing your actual position. Rock Polish once again."

Onix's body glowed again and then it darted around the field even faster than before. It was just ridiculous how quickly the massive serpent could move. Ash felt like they were fighting Ekans again—if Ekans was twenty-five feet long and made of solid rock.

He knew Sobek could move quickly underground, but this was pushing it. Ash didn't think the croc could accurately predict Onix with how fast it was moving and decided to go straight into his plan to trap the behemoth rather than weaken it at first. Maybe the damage Pyro had done would make up for the abandoned part of his strategy.

"Ant Pit," he said clearly. He didn't have to be very loud about it. Sobek's senses underground were impressive, and Ash had no doubt that his Pokemon could hear him just fine even if he was several feet below the battlefield.

Onix continued to dart around the field for several more seconds. Ash simply waited for Sobek to make his move. Brock seemed slightly confused by how unworried his opponent was, but then he hadn't heard the last command Ash had given.

As he watched Onix come around again, Ash noticed the ground start to dip and smirked. Sobek had laid his trap.

Onix came around one more time and the battlefield immediately sank under its colossal weight. It bellowed in surprise as it sank into Sand Tomb and wriggled in an effort to escape, but its own heavy build made that nearly impossible. Onix just kept sliding into the pit.

Brock was shouting something, but Onix suddenly roared in pain and the Gym Leader blanched. Sobek had erupted from the pit and punched his hard fangs into the damaged section of Onix's body—the same place that Pyro had slashed with Metal Claw. Cracks extended along Onix's armor, causing the beast's roar to rise into a shriek of grating stone.

"Slam!" Brock shouted frantically. "Get it off of you!"

"Let it go and use Dig!" Ash retaliated. "Unbalance it!"

Sobek let go immediately and wriggled back underground before Onix could crush him. He swam through the sandy pit as if it were liquid and tackled the behemoth's midsection. Onix bellowed as it was unbalanced and wobbled in an effort to regain control. However, the movement brought its head low to the ground and that was plenty good a target for Ash.

"Bite the head!"

There was another furious roar from Onix as Sobek leaped out of the ground and snapped his jaws into the rock serpent's crest. The Sandile heaved with all the strength in his massive head and managed to yank Onix to the ground. Ash grinned as the behemoth thrashed its body to get loose, but it was well and truly trapped in the Ant Pit while Sobek's teeth were tearing through its crest. He didn't care if Onix was made of stone armor—Sobek had bitten through a steel katana in the Viridian Forest. That had to hurt.

A few seconds later and Sobek snapped right through the stone crest. Onix roared in pain again and slumped to the ground, groaning heavily. Sobek spat out the chunk of rock and hissed at Onix threateningly, but Brock recalled it a moment later.

Forrest called it. "Onix is unable to battle! Both of the Gym Leader's Pokemon are incapacitated! The challenger wins!"

Brock pocketed Onix's Poke Ball and smiled across the field. "Well done. It takes a lot to do that much damage to Onix."

"Thanks," Ash frowned worriedly. "Um, its crest will grow back, right? I read that Onix can regenerate, but…"

"It'll be back to normal within a week or two," Brock assured him. "I appreciate the concern, though. Onix has taken worse, but that was impressive. I didn't think Sandile's jaws were that powerful."

Ash grinned at the crocodilian, who had calmed now that the battle was over and merely smirked toothily back at his trainer. "Well, Sobek's got the best teeth in the business."

Brock laughed and nodded. "I don't doubt it. He punched right through Onix's armor like it was styrofoam. I haven't seen that in a while. Anyways, here's your Boulder Badge."

He handed Ash a simple silver badge with an octagon pattern. Ash took the badge and pocketed it for the time being, though it would go into his badge case once he left the gym. He smiled at Brock and held his hand out. "Thank you. It was a great battle."

"It really was," the teenager agreed with feeling. Brock shook his hand and grinned. "By the way, feel free to come back here for a rematch once you get all your badges. I'd be more than happy to fight you with my real team once you get stronger."

Ash grinned back wildly and Sobek hissed with anticipation. "I think we'll definitely take you up on that."

"Good. Well Ash, I'd love to chat some more, but I have another challenger waiting on me," Brock glanced up to the stands where the purple-haired boy was waiting patiently. He called over to him. "I'll be right with you! Come on down to the battlefield!"

The boy nodded silently and got up. Brock turned back to Ash and gave him one last nod. "Get to the Pokemon Center and let your team get healed. I know Sandile didn't take much damage, but Charmander has to be feeling the Mega Punch and Slam it took. Geodude and Onix are low level, but when any rock-type hits something, they hit it hard."

"I will. See you around, Brock," Ash dipped his head and turned away to leave for the Pokemon Center, recalling Sobek and calling Pichu back to his shoulder on his way out.

He couldn't stop grinning. He'd won his first badge!

**/**

Joy took his Poke Balls and smiled at Ash when he showed her the Boulder Badge. "Congratulations! It's not easy for new trainers to beat Brock's rock-types. That Onix of his is particularly tricky."

"Yeah, it was a lot faster than I thought it would be," Ash agreed. "But in the end, Sobek managed to trap it. I'm really proud of him and Pyro. They worked really hard."

"I can tell," she agreed. "I'll have your Pokemon healed soon. What will you be doing in the meantime?"

Ash glanced at Pichu, who was practically wriggling with excitement. His energy had been through the roof ever since the battle ended and Ash knew he should probably help him work some of that out. "I think Pichu and I are going out to the practice field to work on Volt Tackle."

"Alright. Remember, we have a charge station here in case Pichu starts to run low on electricity. You're welcome to use it anytime!"

"Thanks, Nurse," Ash smiled and scratched Pichu's ears fondly. "We'll probably use it a few times today."

* * *

"That's it, Pichu, keep running!" Ash called to the mouse.

Pichu was currently running back and forth across the training field behind the Pokemon Center, putting the energy and excitement he'd built up from watching the gym battle to good use. He could consistently unleash electricity when he ran as fast as he could, but Ash wasn't sure if it was enough. It was impossible for him to tell if the electricity Pichu discharged was from his primary electric organ or the secondary one necessary for Volt Tackle. He figured the only way to find out for sure was to ask Nurse Joy if she could find out.

Ash thought Pichu was getting close to learning the move—far from perfecting it, but just learning it was enough. Besides, practicing Volt Tackle kept Pichu busy, and the busier he was, the less likely he was to try and shock Ash. He smirked at the thought. Pichu always got a good laugh out of zapping him awake.

He adjusted the hat on his head and paused when the speakers outside the Pokemon Center announced that his Pokemon were ready to be picked up. Ash smiled and called Pichu over, letting the mouse rest from his nonstop running.

Pichu was panting when he skittered over to Ash. He knelt down and scratched the mouse's fur behind his ears. "Good boy. You're working really hard."

Pichu leaned into his touch, then snickered and gave Ash a mild shock. It wasn't meant to hurt or even paralyze him, but it made every hair on his body stand on end. Ash rolled his eyes, though he couldn't find it in himself to be annoyed with the electric mouse.

"Yeah, yeah, very funny. C'mon, let's go get Pyro and Sobek, okay?"

The electric-type clambered back onto his shoulder as Ash walked back into the Pokemon Center. He made straight for the desk and saw Joy waiting with his Poke Balls. She smiled cheerily as he came over.

"Your Pokemon have been fully restored, Ash. Neither of them had any serious problems from the battle," Joy informed him.

Ash nodded. "Thank you."

"I assume you'll be heading for Cerulean City next?"

"That is the plan," he admitted while clipping the Poke Balls to his belt. "I want to try and get through Mt. Moon in two days. I won't be leaving until tomorrow, though. Pyro and Sobek deserve a short break and I want to keep working on Volt Tackle with Pichu—by the way, do you know if there's any way to tell if he's actually using his secondary charge organ?"

Joy looked at Pichu, reaching across the counter to scratch the little electric-type under his chin. Pichu chittered happily at the attention. "I can do a body scan on him, if you like. It should only take a few minutes."

Ash nodded politely. "I'd appreciate it."

Pichu hopped onto the counter and Joy passed the little mouse over to her Chansey. "Right, Chansey will get him ready."

He was about to say something else when someone walked up beside him. "Excuse me, Nurse? My Pokemon need to be healed."

"Of course," Joy smiled at the newcomer, taking the Poke Balls he placed on the counter.

Ash looked at the stranger and blinked. "Hey, you're that kid I saw at the gym, aren't you?"

The boy shrugged. "I guess."

"Did you win?"

"Obviously. Brock's Pokemon aren't that strong. Anyone with a good strategy can win."

Ash frowned. The guy had an attitude, but maybe he was just having a bad day? He shrugged. Either way, the kid was strong enough to defeat Brock. That gave him points in Ash's book.

He felt his stomach growl and figured lunch was in order. He nodded to the kid as he left. "Well, maybe I'll see you around. Let's have a battle sometime."

"Whatever."

Ignoring the snappy remark, Ash left for the cafeteria with intentions to feed himself and his hard working Pokemon for a job well done.

* * *

That evening as Ash was getting ready to sleep, he reflected on the events of the day. Pyro and Sobek had won him the Boulder Badge—that was obviously the highlight of it all. Both of them had fought well, each of them managing to win one of the battles.

When he released them following their recovery at the Pokemon Center, Ash noticed that Pyro's flame was larger than before and his scales had reddened further. He was _close_ to evolving, so close. Ash felt like he would reach that milestone before they got to Cerulean City or right when they arrived. It was exciting to think about.

He had no idea where Sobek stood as far as his evolution went. The croc was powerful, but his species was still brand-new to Ash. He remembered vaguely from reading the Pokedex that Sobek would get more aggressive and his teeth would get larger, but Ash had a hard time gauging the ground-type's aggression outside of battle.

Sobek was just mellow when he wasn't fighting—not lazy necessarily, but he was calm and preferred to relax. Whenever Ash set him loose, the croc would find the nearest patch of sunlight or the warmest area he could get to and bask. If he stayed in one spot to heat up for long enough, he would open his jaws to release some of the excess heat. It was fun to watch, especially when he fell asleep like that.

Nurse Joy had given him useful information regarding Pichu—the mouse was starting to access his secondary charge organ, but it wasn't yet enough for him to use Volt Tackle. They would have to keep working on it every chance they got, because Ash was sure Pichu would evolve almost the same time as Pyro. Pichu as a breed just grew quickly and evolved fast. Baby Pokemon weren't meant to stay in their current form for a long period of time.

He could already see Pichu's fur starting to darken slightly and his electrical attacks were getting a fair bit stronger. Pichu was still the weakest member of the team, but he was clearly the fastest. Ash had no doubt that would continue when he evolved into Pikachu.

His plan now was to get through Mt. Moon. The mountain pass harbored a variety of Pokemon he had yet to encounter along with many trainers passing back and forth between Pewter and Cerulean City. He would get many chances to battle with his team and make them stronger. Ash was also debating catching another Pokemon while he was in there. It kind of depended on what he saw. Geodude and Zubat were known to be common in the caves and evolved into some powerful breeds, but he wasn't quite sure if he wanted one.

Geodude were strong when properly trained, but they had a whole myriad of weaknesses and very few counters to utilize. Moreover, many of those counters couldn't even be taught until they had fully evolved into Golem. Zubat had the potential to be versatile when they evolved into Crobat. However, both Zubat and Golbat were very sensitive to sunlight and required special training to effectively battle during the day.

He shrugged at the thought. There was still plenty of time before the League Tournament began. If Ash decided to catch a Zubat later in his journey, he would. If not, then there were still many flying or poison-types to capture around Kanto.

Mt. Moon wasn't filled with only Geodude and Zubat, though. There were supposed to be Paras and Sandshrew as well, though neither of them really caught his interest. Paras and Parasect were both fairly weak battlers, though he supposed their variety of spores would be useful for captures. He didn't want a Sandshrew because he already had a ground type—Sobek.

There was no need to capture a Pokemon of the same type as one he already possessed. At least, not at this stage in his journey. He didn't even have a full team yet. Ash figured he would only go to the effort of capturing more than a single Pokemon of any type if the Pokemon in question really caught his attention.

There were also Clefairy in Mt. Moon. He had never thought about capturing a fairy-type before, but he'd consider it. Clefairy and Clefable had a wide move pool and were quite rare. Ash decided if he found one worth catching, he'd go for it. If he didn't, then he'd just keep traveling until he found a fairy-type for himself.

He shifted in his bed and a light grumble made him smile. Sobek's head was on his stomach—the croc apparently found his body heat to be quite comfortable when he slept. Ash was glad Sobek had gotten used to traveling with him so quickly. He had initially thought the Sandile would be difficult to work with, but Sobek was laid-back and at ease around him. At least, he was when they weren't engaged in battle. That was when the infamous aggression of his breed gleefully came to life.

Pyro was nestled by his neck, keeping his tail on a fireproof blanket Ash had purchased earlier that day. He figured it would be safer and more comfortable for Pyro if he had a place to just set his tail that wouldn't burn the Pokemon Center down. The Charmander was sleeping deeply now. He hadn't taken as much damage as Ash had feared from Onix's powerful Slam, but the lizard was still tired from the accelerated healing process that Nurse Joy applied to him. Ash smirked when Pyro made a little snore and twitched.

Ash's little troublemaker was actually slumped over Sobek. The reason for that was because Pichu had a habit of setting off little electric shocks in his sleep that would jolt Ash awake. Sobek's ground-typing effectively nullified the small discharges and everyone got to sleep peacefully.

Pichu was annoyed at first when Ash asked him to sleep with Sobek, but promised that he could sleep normally again once he evolved. The mouse was having difficulty controlling his power now that he was close to evolution, but he would regain dominance over his random shocks once he was a Pikachu.

He smiled at how comfortable his team looked and decided to join them in dreamland. Ash _was_ pretty tired after all the action today.

* * *

"Pidgey, Tackle!" Shouted the youngster. His small bird folded its wings and dove out of the air, aiming to take Pichu right in the middle.

Ash smirked. "Jump on it."

Pichu snickered and waited until Pidgey was just a few feet away before leaping straight up. His fall brought him right onto the bird's back, leaving it well and truly surprised.

"Thunder Shock."

Pidgey let out a shriek as its feathers stood on end from the discharge of electricity Pichu set upon it. The electric mouse giggled mischievously and leapt off his opponent, who struggled to stay in the air.

The trainer they were facing grit his teeth. "Pidgey, use Gust!"

Ash watched the bird unleash a whirlwind, but it was pretty weak now. Considering the bird was fairly close to the ground, Ash figured it was a good time for Pichu to try out the move they'd been working on.

"Volt Tackle!"

Pichu started to run and built up a cloak of electricity, picking up speed as he got closer and closer. He leapt up at Pidgey and impacted it, but Ash noticed that the charge had begun to break up just before the mouse made contact. He frowned. They still weren't there quite yet.

As it was, though, the makeshift Volt Tackle was enough to defeat Pidgey. The tiny bird fell out of the air and collapsed. Its trainer recalled it and sulkily handed Ash the prize money he'd earned. Ash watched the kid stomp away and shrugged. He had won that fair and square. The kid could sulk or get over it.

Ash smiled at Pichu when the mouse climbed up onto his shoulder. He scratched the electric-type's ears and smirked when Pichu let out a happy chitter. Pichu had gotten in several fights on their way to Mt. Moon, since Ash suspected he wouldn't be fighting anything aside from the occasional Zubat when they got to the mountain. He wanted the electric-type to get a workout in.

Volt Tackle still frustrated them. Pichu could get the move started and run with the charge, but he couldn't maintain it long enough to make the impact as powerful as it needed to be. Ash pushed that thought aside. They had made progress. Pichu _would_ get it—he was certain.

He continued making his way towards the entrance to the mountain pass. They weren't too far away and Ash wanted to get through part of Mt. Moon while there was still daylight. It would probably take him a couple of days given that there would no doubt be several trainers for him to battle. There was a Pokemon Center stationed on the Pewter City side of the pass, which trainers could use to heal their teams before they made the crossing.

Ash had just spotted the building when he heard someone call behind him. He turned around and blinked. It was the same guy he'd seen at the Pewter Gym.

"What's up?" Ash asked him.

The guy looked serious, just like he had when Ash first met him. "I want to battle you. You were pretty good when you fought at the Pewter Gym and everyone else I've fought along the way here didn't even make my Pokemon break a sweat. I figure you'd be a decent enough challenge for them."

Pichu snickered with delight and Ash grinned. "Those are some fighting words. I'm Ash."

"That's the idea," the kid smirked. "My name's Paul. I'm from the Sinnoh region."

"Sinnoh?" Ash echoed. He'd heard about Sinnoh—it was north of Kanto and a fair bit colder. The region was old, with a Pokemon League as strong and steady as Indigo, although the land under its control was smaller than the Indigo League, which commanded both Kanto and Johto.

"Yeah," Paul shrugged. "I wanted to track down some Pokemon I can't find back home."

Ash was interested to see if any of Paul's Pokemon were from his home region. He didn't know very much about Sinnoh. "Alright, you're on."

Paul smirked. "How does three-on-three sound?"

"Perfect, actually," Ash grinned. "I've only got three Pokemon right now."

"I see. Pichu, Charmander, and that Sandile, right?"

"That's right."

Paul nodded. "I'll start off, then. Nidoran, standby for battle."

He tapped the release on a Poke Ball and out came a large, pink Nidoran. Ash recognized it as the male variety of the species and made a note of the impressive horn. It was small, yes, but Ash had seen pictures of Nidoran before and knew that the horn on this particular specimen was fairly large.

Ash sent out Sobek. The croc hissed when he spotted Nidoran and bared sharp fangs. Nidoran looked unfazed, though his ears twitched and his poisoned barb dripped toxins.

Paul made the first move. "Tackle. Get in close and use Poison Sting."

"Bite," Ash ordered. "Watch out for that horn."

Sobek waited as Nidoran rushed him, hissing all the while. When the small Pokemon impacted him, the croc used his low center of gravity to keep himself steady. He was pushed back a few inches, but then retaliated by snapping his jaws onto Nidoran's head ferociously.

Nidoran squealed and scrabbled to get away. Paul remained calm, however. "Focus Energy."

The poison-type's ears twitched and it stiffened in order to focus its power. Ash didn't know what game Paul was playing, but he wasn't about to let Nidoran stay that close to Sobek while it had a heightened chance of scoring a critical hit. "Fire Fang, then toss it!"

Embers seeped out of Sobek's maw, burning his opponent. Nidoran squealed in pain again before Sobek pulled his head back and hurled the poison-type into the air.

Paul's eyes narrowed. "Come down with Double Kick."

Nidoran righted itself in midair and aimed its large feet for Sobek, who hissed at his foe. Ash recognized the danger of being hit by the fighting-type move, however, and responded fast. "Dig."

Sobek scrabbled his way underground and disappeared a few moments before Nidoran's feet smacked the ground hard. The poison-type's ears quivered warily as it looked around the field. Paul just stood by and watched, eyes narrowed.

Ash waited. It wasn't like Sobek was going to take his sweet time.

That became abundantly clear when the croc burst out of the ground beneath Nidoran and smashed his large head into its flank. Nidoran was hurled away and came to a stop, ears drooping and looking pretty tired. Ash frowned. It wasn't putting up too much of a fight.

"Long range Poison Sting," Paul ordered. Instead of using its horn for Poison Sting, Nidoran opened its mouth and spat a series of venomous needles at Sobek. The croc wasn't far enough away to dodge, so took the attacks and just hissed furiously. Sobek was getting riled up. Ash knew that he wasn't going to let Nidoran hit him again without knocking it out.

Paul appeared satisfied by the Poison Sting and grunted. "Double Kick."

Nidoran made another rush and this time leapt up to try and hit Sobek from the flanks. The croc snarled and opened up his maw, which trickled fire. But Nidoran was apparently trained to aim better than that.

Sobek snapped his fangs on empty air when Nidoran's foot collided with his lower jaw. The Sandile was initially surprised and in pain from the attack, but then glared at Nidoran with sudden fury. Before Ash could even give an order, Sobek rapidly snapped his jaws on Nidoran's body and shook it like a rag doll. When the croc finally threw his foe away, Nidoran hit a nearby tree and slumped to the ground, unconscious.

Ash winced from the impact. Sobek really did get incredibly aggressive in battle. If something attacked him and didn't back off quickly enough, it would pay the price.

Paul recalled Nidoran and glanced at the Poke Ball before setting it back on his belt. Silently, he picked out another one. "Round one to you, then."

"Looks like," Ash replied as he returned Sobek. He scratched Pichu's ears. "Get out there, buddy."

Pichu leaped to the ground and sparked at Paul, snickering. The other trainer seemed to smirk at the rodent and released his second Pokemon.

The Pokemon which appeared was a small yellow creature with short legs, two strong arms, and a pair of horns on the top of its head. It spun its arms while grinning and electricity charged between the prongs.

Ash looked at it with interest. Elekid were fairly rare in Kanto, though their evolved form Electabuzz were only slightly easier to find. They were the kind of electric-type which had traded incredible speed for brute force. When they hit, they could hit hard.

He stated things off this time. "Pichu, Tackle. Run around it and keep it guessing."

Paul smirked. "Charge. Thunder Punch."

Elekid began to whirl its arms again, charging electricity between its prongs. It had only gotten in a few seconds of charge though before Pichu rammed into it with Tackle. Elekid let out a growling sound and built up electricity around its fist, then punched the smaller Pokemon ferociously.

Pichu cried out and was sent flying, but he recovered before hitting the ground and landed safely. Ash frowned. Elekid was a good bit stronger than Nidoran.

"Thunder Shock," he ordered. He knew Thunder Shock wasn't going to be very effective, but it would let him measure Elekid's strength without getting Pichu too close to it. He didn't think Pichu could take too many of those boosted Thunder Punches.

The small bolt of energy hit Elekid easily, but it just took a step back and whirled its arms again before launching a larger charge right back at Pichu. Ash's Pokemon weathered the assault fairly well, though it was obvious who had taken the most damage out of that exchange. He frowned again. He didn't think Pichu would be able to win this with their usual tactics of running circles around the opponent and zapping them.

He decided to go for broke. "Volt Tackle. Put everything you've got into it."

Pichu took a second to tense up and build electricity, then rushed Elekid as fast as he could. Elekid seemed surprised by the blur of speed, but its trainer wasn't so easily fazed.

"Meet it head-on. Thunder Punch," Paul ordered.

Elekid quickly whirled its arms, then swung a fist at Pichu right as the rodent leapt up to crash into it. The resulting impact was rough on both Pokemon—Elekid ended up taking the full brunt of Volt Tackle, (which appeared to have succeeded this time) but Pichu had been struck with Thunder Punch and took the recoil damage Volt Tackle was infamous for.

Pichu staggered back with a whine and sat down hard. Ash pulled out his Poke Ball and recalled him. He was just glad that Pichu had finally succeeded with Volt Tackle. There was no need for him to get completely wiped out—besides, Ash could tell that Elekid would have undoubtably won that round. It was simply stronger and more experienced.

Paul arched an eyebrow at the early recall, but Ash was quick to answer the unspoken question. "It takes a lot of electricity for Pichu to use Volt Tackle. If he doesn't knock the opponent out with it, he's basically empty on power. He can't fight anymore."

The other trainer nodded and recalled Elekid, which was grinning widely from its victory. Ash would admit that the electric-type had surprised him with its strength. Elekid, like other Baby Pokemon, weren't particularly strong, but that one had a lot of potential.

Ash set Pyro loose and Paul gauged the Charmander before sending out his third Pokemon. "Turtwig, standby for battle."

His third Pokemon was one that Ash hadn't even heard of before. It was a small green creature with a large head and a shell on its back. A small plant protruded from the top of its head. He noted the large mouth and decided that would be a good thing to stay away from.

He was curious about Paul's strategy, though. Sending out what appeared to be a grass-type against a fire-type didn't make a lot of sense. But this guy was good enough to defeat Brock, so he was sure to have something up his sleeve.

Ash watched Pyro swish his fiery tail from side to side and muttered. "Ember. Keep it at a distance and figure out what moves it has."

Pyro growled and started to run, spitting flames at Turtwig as he moved. Paul narrowed his eyes. "Evade it. Use Razor Leaf."

Turtwig began to run away from the embers and retaliated by swinging its head from side to side. The twig on its head started to launch sharp blades of leaves at Pyro, who just growled and burnt them with Ember. Both of the small Pokemon exchanged attacks like that fire a little while until Ash figured it was time to change things up a bit.

"Get in close. Metal Claw."

Paul smirked at that. He waited until Pyro was just a few feet away before barking. "Trip it! Pin it down with Bite."

Turtwig suddenly aimed a Razor Leaf at Pyro's foot and knocked the charging Charmander off-balance. Pyro hit the ground harshly, shrieking a second later when Turtwig leapt onto his back and clamped those powerful jaws around his neck. He scrabbled to get free, but the grass-type had him well and truly stuck in place.

Ash paled. There wasn't any way for Pyro to get Turtwig off of him. His arms just weren't long enough to reach the grass-type clutching his back. He raised the Poke Ball to recall his starter.

Suddenly there was a surge of white light and Pyro's form glowed violently. Turtwig's eyes widened in surprise, matching his trainer. Ash gaped as Pyro's shrieks deepened to a roar and his body became to change. A horn sprouted from his head and his snout became pointed. Pyro's arms and legs lengthened as he grew taller, and his claws and fangs grew larger. The light exploded away from him with a thrash of his tail, showing that the flame on the end of his tail was blazing more intensely than ever.

The Charmeleon that replaced Charmander's form was easily twice the size of his previous stage. His scales were a deep red and his onyx eyes took on a hint of bluish gray. Pyro pushed himself to his feet with his larger, stronger arms and twisted his head to glare at Turtwig (who had clung to his neck all along) with blatant fury.

Turtwig yelped as Pyro reached around with his long arms and grabbed the grass-type by one of its stubby legs, yanking it off the fire-type's neck. The Charmeleon held Turtwig upside down and bared his fangs at his bewildered foe.

Ash saw smoldering flames lurking behind Pyro's jaws and decided to try something. "Fire Fang!"

Pyro's jaws lunged forward with a roar and his burning fangs snapped into Turtwig's body. The grass-type squealed and wriggled in an effort to escape, but even newly evolved, Pyro was too strong. The Charmeleon shook Turtwig in his mouth a few times and then threw him across the field. Ash watched as Turtwig bounced along the ground harshly, eventually skidding to a stop. Turtwig slumped over and Paul recalled it, his face expressionless.

Ash grinned wildly. "Pyro!"

Pyro turned and matched his grin with fangs bared in a smile. He spat a flame into the air and growled excitedly, obviously thrilled to have evolved. Ash ran over to him and threw his arms around the Charmeleon. He felt the warm, tough scales under his fingers and exclaimed to his friend. "Congrats, buddy! You evolved!"

The Charmeleon let out a pleased rumble. Ash looked up as Paul walked over, looking unperturbed at his loss. The other trainer dipped his head. "It was a good battle. Congratulations on your Charmander evolving."

"Thanks," Ash nodded back. "Though we'll have to train harder than ever. If Pyro hadn't evolved just then, I'm pretty sure you would have won that."

"No point in worrying about what might have been," Paul grunted. "I'll just have to train Turtwig more. He's close to evolving as well—he should get there by the time we reach Cerulean City."

Paul was quiet for a moment. "You intend to participate in the Indigo League Tournament, right?"

"Of course."

"Good. In the event we don't encounter each other on the road again after this, I expect to meet you there on the battlefield," Paul gave him an even look. "You've got more talent than the other scrubs I've seen here in Kanto. Don't disappoint me. If you can't keep up, I'll knock you out of the tournament before it even gets started."

Pyro let out a growl and Ash's eyes narrowed. "I don't plan on losing."

Paul cracked a smirk. "Good. Make sure you're stronger next time—and I suggest you capture some more Pokemon. The three Pokemon you have now won't be enough to get past any more than maybe two Gym Leaders."

"Don't worry about me," Ash replied. "You'd better work on your own team."

"True," the other trainer agreed. Then Paul left without another word, making his way towards the Pokemon Center.

Ash looked back at Pyro and smiled, scratching the fire lizard at his neck. It was the same spot he had liked as a Charmander and that didn't change in his new form. Ash decided to leave his starter out as they followed Paul to the Pokemon Center. Then it would be on to Mt. Moon and Cerulean City—where Ash would challenge the water-type gym and win his second badge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think I'll include team updates for each chapter from this point on. Might make keeping up with the team a bit easier.
> 
> Ash Ketchum current team:
> 
> -Pyro (Male Charmeleon)
> 
> -Pichu (Male)
> 
> -Sobek (Male Sandile)


	4. Cascade Blue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ash's trip through Mt. Moon takes a deadly turn when Team Rocket shows up. Researcher Bill has a problem. Officer Jenny has a problem. Ash picks a fight with Misty.

_Chapter Four: Cascade Blue_

"Here you are, Ash. Your Pokemon have been fully healed!"

"Thank you, Nurse," Ash reclaimed the Poke Balls he had given her. He was just about to leave for Mt. Moon, but his team needed to recover after their difficult battle against Paul. Ash had also wanted Pyro to undergo a checkup with Joy to ensure he didn't have any complications regarding his evolution. That was a rare occurrence, but it was better to be safe than sorry. The good Nurse had confirmed for him that Pyro was perfectly healthy after his evolution and ready to resume traveling on the road again.

Ash returned Pyro and Sobek's Poke Balls to his belt and let Pichu out. The electric mouse shook himself once released and immediately climbed his trainer to claim Ash's shoulder. He had to admit, he was already used to that. At this point, it started to feel wrong if Pichu _wasn't_ perched by his head.

He thanked Joy again and then left the Pokemon Center. Ash had already double checked his supplies while he was waiting on his healing team. He had everything he needed to get through Mt. Moon; rope, flashlight, jacket, and so on. Pyro would probably be spending a good amount of time out of his Poke Ball just to light the way and deter wild Pokemon. Ash figured that nothing in the mountain would give him too much trouble if they saw the fire lizard with him.

Ash walked from the Pokemon Center to the tunnel entrance about a hundred yards away. He looked up, noting that Mt. Moon's highest peaks were hidden in clouds. The mountain was absolutely gigantic, but he knew it was relatively small compared to some of the other mountains in the world. Mt. Silver, for one. It was the highest peak in Kanto and Johto, though even it was dwarfed by the infamous Mt. Coronet in Sinnoh, which was said to touch the heavens.

Pichu gave him a light zap that was meant to get his attention and snickered when Ash flicked his large ears. The electric-type made him smirk with those little pranks. Ash scratched Pichu's fur and then walked into the tunnel, where he would find the bowels of Mt. Moon and whatever creatures lived there.

* * *

As it turned out, Ash didn't have to wait long before he met the wild Pokemon. He'd only been walking for about ten minutes when a flock of Zubat made their presence known. The small poison-types liked to nest in large groups, only attacking travelers if they were startled or had a Golbat with them. They hissed at Ash, but Pichu's sparks and a breath of flame from Pyro kept the little Pokemon away. He just smiled at the furry creatures, amused by their clicking sounds as they tried to determine what he was with echolocation.

Mt. Moon held more Zubat than Ash cared to count. Most caves were full of them, but large mountain tunnels like this were almost overpopulated. Ash found five good-sized colonies of Zubat in just the first hour they spent trekking through the caves, though only one of them had a Golbat.

He paused when he saw the evolved form of Zubat and seriously considered catching it. Golbat were a fair bit more vicious than Zubat and easier to train in the sunlight. However, Ash didn't think it would be a good idea to catch the poison-type because it was literally buried in the Zubat masses. If he missed throwing a Poke Ball at it, not only could he accidentally capture a Zubat, but he could anger Golbat. That might set the whole colony on him, and his team was neither strong nor fast enough to escape so many enemies. He decided to pass on the Golbat. If he saw another one alone, maybe he'd have a go at it.

As time went on, Ash saw a few more of the mountain Pokemon, though he didn't see anything he really wanted to capture. Aside from the numerous Zubat in Mt. Moon, there were Geodude and Paras sitting around on the borders of the path. They weren't even bold enough to challenge him most of the time. That was what made most of his decisions on catching something new. If the Pokemon he encountered weren't interested in fighting, Ash wouldn't go to the effort of capturing them. That wasn't fair to the Pokemon and it wouldn't help him grow as a trainer.

Despite the lack of catchable Pokemon, Ash did run into a good few trainers. They were mostly beginners like him, but Ash had yet to suffer a defeat. Thinking about it, the only times he'd come close to losing a battle was against Leaf (whom he'd tied with) and Paul. Ash was certain Paul was the strongest trainer he'd fought so far. The guy had defeated Brock just like him and obviously knew how to train his Pokemon. He was definitely stronger than Leaf had been when Ash battled her.

He knew that there were far more powerful trainers out in Kanto, but for now Ash could defeat everyone who challenged him. That helped with training his Pokemon and earned him a bit of extra money.

However, as Ash got deeper into the mountain, he began to notice things that made him uneasy. A lot of the Zubat colonies began to get really quiet or disappeared entirely. Ash hadn't seen another person for a while and the lack of life disturbed him. Pichu was another reason for his worry—the mouse had his oversized ears pricked and seemed edgy. Slightly ahead of him, Pyro had a growl bubbling in his throat almost constantly. They were not happy.

"What do you think, buddy?" Ash scratched Pichu under his jaw, but frowned when the little mouse didn't lighten up. "That bad, huh?"

Pichu squeaked nervously and pricked those sharp ears of his. A light hiss slipped from Pyro's jaws and the usual swishing of his tail paused momentarily, as if he were listening for something. Ash bit his lip. He knew better than to doubt their instincts.

They hadn't let Ash down before, after all.

* * *

Ash knew he was supposed to be getting close to the halfway point in Mt. Moon. The tunnel system narrowed the further in you went, but had a large chamber deep inside that served as a resting spot of sorts. The problem was, the closer he got to said waypoint, the more nervous Pichu and Pyro became. Ash decided to take a break before they reached rest stop—if there was a fight waiting for him, he wanted his Pokemon to be ready. They ended up sitting in a small, enclosed cave just off the tunnel. It was out of sight from prying eyes and secluded enough for Ash and his team to feel relatively safe.

Not that they actually got to relax at all—Pyro didn't take his sharp eyes off the path and Pichu's ears were on high alert. Ash was tempted to set Sobek loose to investigate with Dig, but didn't want to risk sending him into some kind of trap. The way Pyro and Pichu were so on edge made him certain something was very wrong. Even more disturbing was that the wild Pokemon were completely gone.

Pyro suddenly froze and Ash saw his lip curl, exposing the lizard's fangs. The boy's hand drifted towards Sobek's Poke Ball. He tensed when he heard footsteps and voices, but remained silent. Whoever it was didn't need to know they were there—as long as they didn't attack, Ash's Pokemon would bring them no harm.

Ash saw two figures walk down the tunnel, opposite the direction he'd been traveling. Their backs were to him, so there was no chance they'd spot him even with Pyro's tail lighting up the inside of their little cave. He didn't move, instead listening to whatever they were talking about.

"Ugh, I can't believe we got put on some grunt job like this. Blocking the tunnel entrance? Really? Do we have to walk all that way? Why not just bring the ceiling down right here?" The first man grumbled.

"Because that might make the whole tunnel collapse, you idiot. There's a reason you get the grunt jobs," huffed his companion, another man. "Besides, it's an easy job compared to guard duty. Remember that kid that totally wrecked three of our guys earlier? Oh right, _you_ were included in that little group, weren't you?"

"He got lucky! Just because he used some weird Pokemon from Sinnoh—"

"You got your ass handed to you. Shut up. Besides, Proton took him down. Now he and the other trainers that were stumbling through Mt. Moon can either join us or have their Pokemon taken. We win either way. Team Rocket has the cream of the crop."

Ash was frozen as the pair walked off. Team Rocket. They were in the tunnel, in Mt. Moon. They were kidnapping trainers and stealing their Pokemon. He swallowed hard. The idea of losing any one of his three friends was horrible. Maybe he could sneak past the grunts and get away on the Pewter City side…

Then a thought clicked in his head and Ash realized the Rockets had been talking about Paul. A trainer with exotic Pokemon from Sinnoh—it had to be Paul. He had left just before Ash did. And who knew which other trainers they'd kidnapped? Leaf? Gary? They couldn't be that far ahead of him.

His eyes grew hard. He would not leave any of his rivals here to have their Pokemon stolen by thieves. Ash had no choice but to help Paul and whoever else the Rockets had attacked. He needed a plan. His rival and the other trainers had been caught unawares, but Ash knew the Rockets were here. Plus, Team Rocket didn't know _he_ was here. There was no way he could win in a straight fight, he knew. If Paul had been taken out, then he would probably meet the same fate that way. Fortunately, Ash didn't have to fight fair—these were Rockets. Criminals. They played dirty, and it was a good thing he didn't have too many morals to prevent him from doing exactly the same thing.

Ash quietly released Sobek. The croc blinked at him and opened his jaws, but Ash quickly set a finger against his own lips. That silenced his Pokemon, and Ash quietly filled him in. "We're still in Mt. Moon. Team Rocket is here. They're kidnapping trainers and stealing their Pokemon."

Sobek's eyes narrowed and a steady rage built up in the onyx orbs. Ash quietly continued. "We can't just leave those people here to have their Pokemon stolen, so we're going to give Team Rocket a nasty surprise."

Ash looked at Sobek. "I need you to scout for us first. Go further down the tunnel to the rest area—it's not far away and that's probably where the Rockets have made their base. Find out how many there are and then come back here. After that, I want you to set the other trainers loose. Help get them to their Pokemon. There's just no way we can beat the Rockets on our own. Don't attack unless you're spotted, and trap every Rocket that finds you with Sand Tomb."

His team nodded to him. Ash glanced towards the tunnel to make sure no one else was listening. "Pyro, I'm going to recall you for a bit. Your tail flame will stick out like a sore thumb. I'll set you loose when we spring the trap. Pichu, you're with me. If we run into anyone, I want you to zap them senseless, but keep it quiet."

Pyro nodded again. Pichu grinned with fiendish delight and Sobek bared his fangs aggressively. Ash scratched the ground type under his jaw and muttered lowly. "Alright. Go, Sobek. Remember—quick and quiet. Don't let anyone see you."

The Sandile pushed his jaw further into Ash's hand, then turned away and quietly used Dig to slip away. Ash recalled Pyro a second later and waited in the now dark cave with Pichu, eyes focused exclusively on the tunnel in case anymore Rockets came snooping.

It was just a waiting game now.

* * *

Ash and Pichu didn't have to wait long for Sobek to return, but it was probably the most intense twenty minutes of his life. The last thing he wanted to happen was to hear some ruckus coming from down the tunnel and find out that his Pokemon had been caught by Team Rocket. Fortunately, Sobek did return to Ash without incident.

He saw the croc pop back out of the first hole he'd dug and sighed in relief. Ash waited for Sobek to crawl over to him before muttering quietly. "How many are there?"

Sobek scratched the ground and Ash watched with a frown as the marks quickly went upwards of twenty. He glanced at the Sandile in front of him. "How many trainers were caught?"

Sobek tapped the marks with his claws. So Team Rocket had captured about as many trainers as they had members here. That evened the odds a bit, but only if Ash could set them free and get their Pokemon to them. That took priority.

Ash rubbed the Sandile's head. "Good work. Pichu and I are going in now. You do your part—get to those trainers and set them free. Did you find out where the Rockets are keeping their Pokemon?"

The ground-type shrugged, so Ash took that as a no. "Help the trainers find them, but be quiet about it. Remember to take down any Rockets that spot you, quickly. If they sound the alarm, we'll be in trouble."

Sobek nodded and ducked back into his hole. Ash stood up quietly with Pichu on his shoulder and warily glanced out of the cave. Satisfied that the coast was clear, he slipped out into the tunnel and did his best to stay inconspicuous as they made their way for the rest area, where the Rockets would no doubt be basing their operations here.

It was a tense few minutes, but the rest spot was close by. Ash peered around the curve of the tunnel, which would take them to the midway point. The large area had been converted to a mine of some sort. He frowned at that. The Rockets were obviously looking for something besides trainers. Ash hugged the curve of the tunnel and carefully scanned the area, noting the single guard that stood between him and the temporary Rocket base. _Very_ temporary, if he had his way.

The Rocket guarding the entrance to the rest area looked bored and kept yawning. Ash smirked. If he played his cards right, it wouldn't be difficult to take the guard out. But he had to be quiet about it. Glancing past the guy- who hadn't even noticed him with his eyes continually closing with sleep—Ash saw the group of captive trainers. They were tied up on the floor and looked a little roughed-up, but were otherwise alright. Two more Rockets were watching them.

Ash was thinking about how to take out the first guard when he noticed the two that were watching their captives suddenly dropped into deep holes in the ground. Not a sound was made, as they were quickly engulfed in Sand Tomb. He could get them out later.

Sobek quietly poked his head out and glanced around, finding there were no other Rockets nearby. With that, Ash saw him crawl out to the surprised trainers and began to bite through their rope bonds. He had to get to them quickly before any of them panicked.

He scratched Pichu on his shoulder and breathed almost silently. "Get him, Pichu. Knock him out as quick as you can."

Pichu grinned with delight and hopped down his shoulder. The mouse casually skittered over to the grunt and climbed onto his shoulder before the man could notice. When the grunt snorted himself awake, he saw the Pichu by his face and blinked dumbly. Pichu snickered and poked his neck, eliciting a small crack of electricity. The man's eyes immediately rolled into the back of his head and he collapsed. It would have made a good bit of noise if Ash hadn't quickly run forward and slowed his fall, wincing at the weight. He was just glad that the grunt wasn't an especially heavy individual.

He dragged the guy back around the corner and let Pichu crawl back onto his shoulder. Ash got to the entrance of the Rocket Base and glanced to make sure there were no more Rockets looking in their area at the moment. Most of them were busy mining for whatever it was they wanted, while one Rocket (presumably their leader) barked orders at them.

Ash quickly darted towards the group of captive trainers, who by now had almost all been freed and were doing their best to stay quiet. He was grateful for that. It would've sucked if his plan got ruined by someone freaking out. Even more helpful was that there happened to be a bunch of unused mining equipment between them and the Rockets that were currently digging. That gave them something to hide behind.

Scanning the group of trainers, Ash found to his relief that neither Leaf nor Gary were among them. They had probably gotten through just before the Rockets set up camp. He spotted Paul and winced when he noticed a cut on the boy's forehead. It obviously hurt, though Paul just seemed to be royally pissed off. The boy was muttering into a Pokegear, but his eyes widened in surprise when he saw Ash rush over. "You!"

"Shh!" Ash hissed, glancing towards the Rockets. Fortunately, none had noticed their escape yet. He nodded when the other trainers looked at him. "We've got to get out of here. Where are your Pokemon?"

One of the other trainers, a girl with orange hair, pointed at the Rocket shouting orders and then to a black tent not far away from him. "Their boss keeps them in his tent. It's always got like four guards on it. Can you get them back for us?"

Ash glanced at the tent, noting that said guards were out with their Pokemon at the ready. He thought a Koffing, two Zubat, and a Sandshrew were a pretty low-quality guard for so many captive Pokemon, but he figured the Rockets preferred numbers. They would not, however, last long if Ash caught them by surprise—especially if Pyro and Sobek got a hold of them.

"I'll handle them. How many of you have Pokemon that can fight right now?" Ash asked. "Ones that weren't hurt too badly?"

While snapping his Pokegear close, Paul immediately stepped forward. The girl with orange hair did as well. His rival grunted. "Grotle got injured a little, but Elekid and the others of my team can fight."

The girl smiled dangerously. "My team is all healthy. I got caught before I was able to send out a Pokemon. That boss of theirs is strong—he's got the most savage Raticate I've ever seen."

Ash frowned at the knowledge, but nodded. "You two come with me. The rest of you, stay here. Act like you're still trapped. When we start fighting, run for the tent and set your Pokemon loose as quick as you can. We'll overwhelm them with numbers and surprise."

The group of captives listened to him. Ash muttered for Sobek to go underground while he, Paul, and the girl slipped through the mining equipment and made their way towards the tent. They stopped about ten yards away, not confident enough in their ability to sneak any closer towards four alert enemy Pokemon.

Paul glanced at Ash and mumbled under his breath. "Now what?"

Ash smirked. "Just watch."

About ten seconds later, the ground beneath all four of the Rocket guards unexpectedly gave way into a pit of sand, where they were buried before any of them could react—well, almost all of them. One managed to get a shriek of surprise out of his mouth, and their Pokemon screeched alarms. All over the base, Rockets froze and spun towards the tent.

"Now!" Ash shouted, setting Pyro loose. The Charmeleon roared furiously and slashed both Zubat out of the air before the bats could comprehend what their echolocation was telling them. Sobek grabbed Sandshrew with his powerful jaws, making it squeal in pain. Pichu jumped right onto Koffing's floating body and discharged a mass of electricity, though the gases the poison-type emitted made him gag.

Shouts were filling the rest area, but Ash had given Paul and the girl the chance they needed. His Pokemon had made quick work of the guards—now the other trainers could get their Pokemon back. He smirked as there was a yell from the group of captives and they all made a run for the tent. The Rocket grunts looked utterly flabbergasted by their sudden loss of control.

Their boss—Proton, Ash remembered from eavesdropping on the grunts—however, was not so easily enraptured. He set loose the biggest, meanest looking Raticate Ash had ever seen and yelled angrily. "Don't just sit there, you useless idiots! Get them! Get them all! Raticate, Hyper Fang that brat!"

Raticate lunged at him, its fangs glowing a harsh white. Ash dove away as it hit the ground and bit right through solid rock. He gulped. If that attack hit him, he _would_ lose something. It wasn't even a question.

Before the angry rat could have another go at him, Pyro lunged and sank burning fangs into its tail. Raticate spun around with a shriek of fury, but the lizard whipped his head back and hurled it towards its trainer. Proton didn't even get a chance to avoid it and was knocked down by Pyro's well-aimed throw.

Pyro snarled with rage. Any creature that had the nerve to attack his trainer was going to hurt, and hurt badly. His tail flame flared and his onyx blue eyes narrowed to slits. Ash saw the other Rockets being engaged by the now freed trainers. For now, the fight was in the trainers' favor—the Rockets had been caught by surprise, after all. But who knew if it would last. Paul and the girl with orange hair were leading the fight. His rival was commanding Elekid and a large grass type that was probably Turtwig's evolved form, while the girl had a Starmie and Golduck out. They were making mincemeat of the Rocket's Pokemon.

The Rocket boss kicked Raticate off of him and screamed in fury. "Kill him, you fool!"

Raticate bolted towards Pyro, who roared a challenge. Ash whipped towards Sobek and Pichu, who were helping the trainers get their Pokemon back. He shouted quickly. "Sobek, help fight the grunts! Pichu, help Pyro! That Raticate is strong!"

Sobek tunneled immediately, appearing on the Rocket's side a few seconds later and snapping at a rather large Golbat. Pichu made a rush for Pyro just as the Charmeleon and Raticate collided.

Pyro was ripping at it with Metal Claw and snapped with Fire Fang, but Raticate was quick. Its opponent no longer had the element of surprise, and quite frankly it wanted the fire-type dead. The monster of a Raticate was more aggressive than any Ash had seen before it—he figured it was probably because of the Rocket's treatment of it, but he couldn't feel pity for the creature. It was a threat that hadn't hesitated to try and kill him. He had to take it out.

Raticate tackled Pyro with a Quick Attack, getting a snarl out of the Charmeleon. Pyro went for a Dragon Rush, but the move was still difficult for him to use and didn't offer a chance for the useful flinch effect this time. Raticate just sidestepped and bit into Pyro's arm. Ash's starter roared in pain as the sharp fangs tore through his scales and flesh.

Pichu made it then, leaping onto Raticate and discharging the biggest Thunder Shock Ash had ever seen. Raticate hissed furiously and let Pyro go, spinning around and biting furiously at the Pichu. It was a slavering beast, eyes bulging and red while saliva flew from its jaws. Pichu clung on for dear life and Ash could only watch with his heart in his mouth. If Pichu got tossed off and Raticate got its jaws into him, he would probably die.

Pyro, however, was not too injured from the bite to get revenge for it.

Raticate _screamed_ as Pyro timed a Fire Fang just right, snapping his jaws once again into its tail and cleaving through it. The Charmeleon hurled the end of Raticate's tail away and roared hatefully, blood flowing from his fangs.

Ash felt sick looking at the gruesome injury, but Raticate was beyond pain or reason. The rat spun around and smashed into Pyro with reckless force. He realized it was a Double Edge—one of the strongest moves Raticate could learn. It would cause recoil damage, but Raticate was just too angry to care. Ash also realized that he'd sorely underestimated this Pokemon. If Raticate knew Double Edge, then it was a lot more experienced than his team.

Needless to say, the devastating force which struck Pyro sent the Charmeleon flying into the stone wall. Pyro slid to the ground with a hiss, stunned to the point of immobility. Ash turned his back to the battle and called out to his starter worriedly. But that was a mistake.

Raticate had seen Ash commanding its hated enemy and lunged at him, ignoring Pichu still clinging to its fur. It wanted to take out the trainer of the one that had caused it such pain. It would accept nothing less.

Ash didn't even get a chance to shout when Raticate bowled him over with Quick Attack. He hit the ground and smacked his head against the hard stone. He cried out as his head spun from the impact. Raticate lunged at him again. This time, it was stopped not by Pichu, but by Sobek. The Sandile had seen Pyro go down and immediately rushed over to help his trainer.

Sobek had managed to Dig below Raticate and sank his fangs into the rat's back leg, pulling it away from Ash. Raticate spun around and tried to land a Hyper Fang, but Pichu's constant electrical discharges were finally starting to take effect. It was getting weaker. While they kept Raticate busy, Pyro managed to recover from the Double Edge and rushed in to help. Ash felt hope swelling in him. Maybe they could—

**Pain.**

Ash screamed as something buried sharp fangs into his shoulder. He caught a glimpse of four wings and glowing red eyes, unconsciously recognizing the attacking creature as a Crobat. It let go almost as quickly as it had struck, then blurred away. Ash remembered reading that Crobat were amongst the fastest Pokemon in the world. Those four wings could power some ridiculous speed.

He looked up, trying to figure out where it had come from. His eyes locked onto Proton, who was sneering with a Poke Ball in his hand. Ash felt stupid for not even thinking that the leader might have more than just Raticate.

It was the last thought he had before his blood began to boil. Ash fell to the ground, choking on pain. There had been venom in the bite—it had to have been Poison Fang. He immediately felt nauseous and the taste of bile swelled in the back of his throat.

He was vaguely aware of screaming around him—apparently, Proton had set his Crobat on everyone fighting Team Rocket. It was an effective plan, going after all the trainers rather than their Pokemon. With their trainers down, the Rockets could overwhelm their panicked and injured opponents with ease.

Ash thought he heard Pichu cry out and felt himself slipping into unconsciousness. Before his vision faded to darkness, he felt the mountain shake, saw a flash of white light, and a titanic roar filled the air. Then he was gone.

* * *

Ash had no idea how long he was unconscious, but he didn't expect to wake up—not after being poisoned by a Crobat. He opened his eyes to find the rock ceiling of Mt. Moon still above him. There was a wonderful scent in the air, and it made him feel better the more he breathed it in.

"Ah, you're awake. That's good."

He blinked and glanced to the side. A young woman, probably nineteen or twenty years old, was sitting beside him. She had waist-length blonde hair and seemed to be a trainer, but Ash didn't recognize her from the group of captives Team Rocket had—

Team Rocket.

Ash almost bolted upright, but the girl set her hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down. She shook her head. "No, don't move. Roserade is using Aromatherapy to clear the poison out of your system. You can't disrupt the healing process or you'll just feel sick."

He frowned. Roserade? The girl smiled and pointed across from him, and he found a green Pokemon with red and blue roses for hands standing over him. The Roserade was gently emitting a green haze from its petals and he suddenly realized why. Aromatherapy was a move used to heal status conditions, like poison, but it was a difficult technique to learn because of the sheer number of healing factors that were incorporated into the special spores. It took a degree of delicacy and control that few Pokemon possessed.

"Don't worry. We got Team Rocket," she told him. "It was a close call for you, though. Proton set his Crobat on you first. The venom was in your system for almost two minutes when we got here—any longer and you might not have made it. You were lucky."

"Are the others okay?" He asked. Ash winced. His throat felt dry and he tasted vomit in his mouth.

She handed him a bottle of water and nodded. "They're fine. The trainers that got bitten by Crobat were already treated for it with modified Antidotes. Roserade had to treat you herself because you had the venom in you the longest. Aromatherapy is quicker and more efficient than modified medicine. Once we were sure you all were in the clear, it was just a matter of getting all the Rockets under arrest. All the grunts were accounted for and my Pokemon got Proton."

Ash took a long drink of water, spitting the first mouthful out to get the taste of bile from his mouth. Then he quenched his parched throat and sighed in relief, even if it was still a little bitter. "Are my Pokemon okay?"

"Yes. They were all huddled around you," she replied. "Your Charmeleon had some nasty bites from Raticate and Sandile got bitten by Crobat. They had the worst injuries from the entire battle. Your Pikachu is fine, though. It evolved literally the second we arrived and gave Raticate quite a shock."

He couldn't stop the wide smile on his face. Ash was upset he hadn't gotten to see Pichu evolve, but he was glad that his Pokemon were alright and had won their battle against Proton's vicious Raticate. Now Pikachu could take his rightful place as a powerful member of Ash's team. He was definitely going to be in the next gym battle.

"Thanks for saving us," Ash said gratefully, but then frowned. "Um, who are you? And how did you know we were fighting Team Rocket?"

"Paul called me a few minutes before the fight on his Pokegear," she held up her own Pokegear as she explained. "I was in Cerulean City by chance and we had an Alakazam teleport myself and several League trainers here. There wasn't much for us to do—you guys cleaned up Team Rocket pretty well, but we were able to arrest them and take out Proton before he could poison more of you."

"As for me, my name is Cynthia," she told him. "I work for the Sinnoh League, but I'm here in Kanto on some business."

Well, that explained how Paul knew her. Ash was grateful that the other boy had the means and sense to call for backup before they assaulted the Rockets. If he hadn't, Proton probably would have killed him and most of the other trainers as well.

"Hey, before I passed out, I thought I heard something roaring," Ash started hesitantly. "Was that my imagination, or…?"

Cynthia smiled. "That was one of my Pokemon. She likes making an entrance. You won't see her right now, though—I recalled her shortly after Proton was detained."

"What were they after, anyways?" He wondered. "They looked like they were mining, or something."

"They were looking for Moon Stones and fossils," Cynthia gestured to a few wooden crates nearby that were currently being sorted through by police. "Both can be sold for a high price. Team Rocket was probably looking to sell them on the black market."

Ash fell silent at that. Before he could think of something else to say, Paul walked over. He dipped his head to Cynthia and muttered. "Thank you again, Cynthia."

"I should be telling you that," she smiled at the boy. "If you hadn't called me, there would probably have been a few casualties."

Paul grunted and looked at Ash. "Well, seeing as you haven't died yet, I assume you're good?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah."

"Good. I'm off to Cerulean City now. We're even by my standing—you set me free and I saved your life by calling her," Paul gestured to Cynthia and then turned away. "Get yourself some more Pokemon. I want a longer battle next time."

With that, Paul left for the tunnel that would take him to Cerulean. Ash sat up and stared after him. "He's got the right idea. I should leave too—"

"Oh, no you don't," Cynthia stopped him with a sharp look. "Roserade treated the poison in your system, but I still need a doctor to clean up that bite you took. Otherwise, I can't allow you to be discharged from our care."

Ash groaned, but she was unwavering. Roserade smirked in amusement.

This was going to take a while.

* * *

"Well, I suppose you're free to go," the doctor told him, though he shook his head in exasperation. "Personally, I'd rather take you to a hospital to make sure your vitals are stable, but Aromatherapy generally covers everything I can think of as a result of Poison Fang. The only thing you'll need to watch out for is that shoulder—don't open up those wounds, young man. They're deep. Bites from the Crobat line are like stab wounds from hypodermic needles."

Ash nodded obediently. He had been waiting for an hour and really just wanted out now that his wound had a bandage on it. The doctor told him it would likely scar, but it was a relatively small bite. It wasn't as if he'd gotten a chunk torn out of him.

The doctor rolled his eyes. "You young trainers just can't be stopped. Very well, you may go. But if you start to feel dizzy or your injury begins to seep, I suggest going to the nearest town for medical treatment. Do I make myself clear?"

He nodded again and the doctor gestured to the exit tunnel. "That will lead you to Cerulean City. Take your time getting there. If you want, we can transport you with an Alakazam, but I think you'd rather walk, wouldn't you?"

Ash smiled. "Yes. I'd like to stretch my legs anyways. I've been sitting down for a while."

"Alright. Good luck, young man."

The doctor left and Ash made sure he had everything he needed before heading off. Just before he was about to leave the rest area though, Cynthia called him.

"Your doctor gave you the all-clear?" She asked. When he nodded, she smiled. "Good luck then, Ash. I have to stay to make sure these Rockets are transported to prison, but I wish you well."

"Thank you," Ash smiled back. "You really saved me and the others. I hope they don't give you too much trouble."

"Oh, they won't," Cynthia's eyes glittered with something akin to amusement at the idea of Rockets giving her trouble. The look disappeared quickly though, and she turned away from him. "Goodbye, Ash. Perhaps we'll meet again somewhere."

Ash nodded and then turned to leave the rest area. He really was ready to leave Mt. Moon.

* * *

It still took him a few hours before Ash finally got out of the mountain tunnel. He was taking it easy considering his injury, but not slowly. Besides that, he ran into a couple of trainers that had no idea about the Rocket incident further in. Ash saw no reason to warn them seeing as the Rockets were taken care of, but he took the chance to battle them with Pikachu.

Ash was still pumped that Pikachu had evolved. The mouse was no longer a "Baby Pokemon" but in a stage that was considerably more developed and mature. Now he could handle greater amounts of electricity, move much quicker, and learn an all-around larger move pool. Ash was even more thrilled when he found that Pikachu had retained Volt Tackle from his Pichu stage. Now they just had to master it and Pikachu would have the ultimate electric-type weapon a member of his species could possess.

He took it easy with Pyro and Sobek because they were still recovering from their fight with the Rockets, though Sobek was less injured and plenty willing to get in a good battle. Ash noticed that his team was a little subdued though. He had a feeling it was something to do with him almost getting killed.

Ash released his team once they were out of the cave system and in fresh air. It was late afternoon. He had just enough time to make it to Cerulean City before night came, which was visible from where he stood by the entrance to Mt. Moon. Before they headed that way, however, he had to talk with his team.

"You guys are upset because Crobat got me, right?" Ash asked. The sullen silence and avoiding looks his Pokemon gave him was answer enough for that. He shook his head at them. "It's alright. Guys, it wasn't your fault. None of us saw Crobat coming. It got a bunch of other people as well. Besides, I'm okay, aren't I?"

The three nodded and Ash smiled. "We'll just have to get stronger and find some more friends, won't we? That way, this won't ever happen again. Deal?"

That seemed to make them feel better, because he got a couple of happy growls and a chitter from Pikachu. Ash grinned. "Alright, let's head to Cerulean City."

His trio of faithful partners cheered and followed his lead.

* * *

The next morning, Ash woke up full of energy again. He still had to take it easy given that his shoulder was hurt, but there was nothing wrong with a little training before he challenged the gym. Ash decided that he'd like to head north of the city to Route Twenty-Four. There were plenty of trainers up there that would be good for training.

Before setting out, however, Ash wanted a plan. There were objectives he laid out prior to training that he sought to achieve—like certain moves to learn or combinations to practice. So while he sat down for breakfast in the Pokemon Center, pulled out his Pokedex, and got to work.

Pikachu was the one he needed to spend the most time with right now. Having just evolved, Ash needed to get a better feel for his abilities and teach him some new attacks. Pichu had been limited in his capabilities—Pikachu could learn a lot more. All he really knew right now was Volt Tackle, Thunder Shock, and Tackle.

Ash definitely wanted to teach Pikachu Quick Attack. A good speed move was always useful if he needed to get close to an opponent. In addition, he wanted to get Thunder Wave and Nuzzle into Pikachu's arsenal. His plan was to turn Pikachu into not only a good fighter, but an excellent capture Pokemon. If he could give his electric mouse the tools he needed to paralyze opponents, it would be beneficial both during a battle and when they were capturing a wild Pokemon.

That was something he needed to work on. Ash loved his team, but he wanted to expand it badly.

While Pikachu worked on speed and electric attacks, Ash thought about what to work on with Pyro. The Charmeleon definitely needed to practice his dragon-type moves. Dragon Rush was basically a glorified Tackle at this point and Dragon Dance took a solid fifteen seconds to even get one boost going. That was useless in a real battle. Dragon-type energy was notoriously difficult to master, so Ash decided that the dragon-type moves would take priority for now.

With Sobek, Ash wasn't really sure what to work on. He was still fairly unfamiliar with his evolutionary line. Going through the Pokedex, he couldn't decide on much more than Assurance. Ash eventually decided that his best bet was to ask Professor Oak. Besides, he hadn't called home since…

Ash froze. He hadn't called home at all in the three weeks he'd been gone. Once he got started, it had totally slipped his mind.

His mother was going to kill him.

* * *

"Three weeks," Delia Ketchum smiled at her son through the video phone. Ash gulped and Pikachu did the same on his shoulder—and Pikachu wasn't even the target of her ire. He could see behind that wonderful smile of hers a fury he was rightfully terrified of. Professor Oak had answered the phone, but she had been right there and politely asked for a moment with her son.

Professor Oak, being the wise man he was, did not even attempt to argue with her.

"It has been three weeks since you left and I haven't heard a word from you in all this time," Delia's eyes glared daggers into Ash's soul. "I _specifically_ remember asking you to keep in touch with me every few days or so. You are calling from _Cerulean City_. That means you passed through Viridian _and_ Pewter _and_ the Pokemon Center at Mt. Moon. Unless there was some miraculous blackout at each of those places every time you passed through, I see no reason why you couldn't have called me."

Ash didn't answer her. His mother's smile faded into a scowl. " _Ash Red Ketchum_ , do you have _any idea_ how worried I was?"

"Sorry," he squeaked. "I…I got distracted."

Delia was never able to stay angry for long. Her scowl disappeared and she sighed. "Just don't worry me like that again, Ash. I thought something happened to you."

"I won't," Ash promised. He also did not dare mention that he had gotten injured in his fight against Team Rocket the day before.

"So, how has your journey been so far?" She asked. Now that Ash had escaped the danger zone, he could get excited again.

"Great! Pyro evolved a couple of days ago," Ash grinned. "And Pichu evolved into Pikachu yesterday!"

Pikachu smirked proudly and raised a paw at Delia. Ash's mother smiled at the mouse. "That's great! I'm glad they're doing well. Have you caught anything else?"

Ash scratched the back of his head. "Well…sort of. Actually, Giovanni gave me my third Pokemon."

"You met Giovanni," Delia was absolutely still. "And he gave you a Pokemon."

"Yeah," Ash frowned. His mom had an unreadable expression that he hadn't ever seen on her face before. "Mom, are you okay?"

"Oh," she nodded quietly. "Yes. I'm sorry. What kind of Pokemon is it?"

He thought that she was still acting odd, but shrugged. "A Sandile. I named him Sobek. He's actually pretty strong. He's the reason I won my gym battle against Brock."

That made her brighten up. "So you did win! I'm so proud of you, Ash! Have you challenged the Cerulean City Gym yet?"

"Not yet. That's actually why I called," Ash began. "I want to do some training before I challenge the gym. But the thing is, I don't really know what to work on with Sobek. I don't know much of anything about Sandile and its evolved forms. So I was wondering if Professor Oak could help me with that."

Delia frowned thoughtfully. "Hmm…Sandile, huh? I assume you're familiar with their tendencies to bite in battle?"

Ash grinned. "That's exactly how he likes to fight."

"I see," she smiled in amusement. "Well, I don't claim to be an expert like Professor Oak, but I think Stone Edge would be a good move. Only problem is…"

"It's a TM," Ash finished. Delia nodded and he sighed. TMs allowed Pokemon to learn so many different attacks, but they were very high-priced. Buying one right now would drain him of funds completely.

Delia smiled with optimism. "Well, better start saving up sweetie! Here, I'll go get Professor Oak. He should be able to help you out."

"Okay. I'll call you before I leave Cerulean City, mom."

"Thank you sweetheart. I wish you good luck on your gym battle!"

With that, his mother walked out of the camera view. A few moments later, Professor Oak came back. He looked at Ash and gave him a wry smile.

"I see you survived."

Ash shuddered. "I got off light. You remember when she caught Gary and I trying to jump on your Rhyhorn?"

Oak chuckled. "I hadn't seen her _that_ angry in a long time. You and Gary didn't cause trouble for a week."

Pikachu snickered on his shoulder. Ash flicked his ear and then got down to business. "Professor, I need your help. There's a Pokemon I'm training…"

After explaining to the Professor his problem with training Sobek, Oak began to scratch his chin. "I see…Sandile, eh? That rather suits Giovanni, actually. In any case, I'm afraid I can't help you too much, Ash. Sandile itself is limited compared to its later stages. Your plan to teach him Assurance is good, but I'd at least recommend teaching him Foul Play as well for stronger adversaries. Most of the moves that make the Sandile line effective are learned through TMs."

Ash frowned. He'd hoped that the Professor would be able to help him more than that. But Professor Oak wasn't going to send him off with next to nothing. "Ash, even if there aren't many moves Sandile can learn right now, there are still things you can work on to prepare him for evolution. Sandile's second and third evolutionary stages are bipedal—his battle style is going to change drastically when he evolves. Right now, I'd suggest working on his biting attacks in addition to learning Assurance and Foul Play. Their biting habits are about the only thing that _doesn't_ change when Sandile evolves. You could even work on Crunch if you desired. Sandile learn it easily if their jaw muscles are built up correctly."

Oak paused for a bit. "Actually, if you let me see him for a moment, I might be able to tell you if he's close to evolving or not."

Ash did just that. He pulled out Sobek's Poke Ball and set the croc loose. Sobek blinked at him confusedly, not seeing a battle around. Ash smiled at him. "There's someone I want you to meet, Sobek. He's going to tell us if you're getting close to evolving."

The notion of evolution apparently was enough for Sobek to decide he wanted to meet Professor Oak. Ash carefully picked him up and held him in front of the video phone for the Professor to see. Oak arched an eyebrow at the sight.

"Can't say I've ever actually seen that before."

"Seen what? A Sandile?"

"No. I've never seen a Sandile willingly let its trainer pick it up—much less one of the males," Oak said slowly. His eyes were glinting with interest. "Is he always this mellow?"

Ash shook his head. "No. You should see him in battle. He bit the crest off of Brock's Onix."

Sobek bared his fangs in a feral grin at that. It was obvious he took pride in his victories. Oak smiled at the sight. "I have no doubt of that. Well, from what I can see his teeth look excellent. He's also rather large, which is good—that means he's getting close to evolving."

Oak was quiet for about a minute as he looked Sobek over as best he could, then gave his deduction. "From what I can see, he's an impressive specimen. He'll be a powerful battler when he reaches his prime, Ash. Work with him as best you can and you'll have a valuable asset that few can bring down outright."

That must have pleased the Sandile because he growled agreement. Ash smiled at Sobek and scratched the croc's jaw. Oak shook his head at the sight and grunted. "You're lucky he's so willing to work with you, Ash. Most other Sandile would've taken your finger off."

"I know," he replied. Ash looked back at the Professor. "Thanks, Professor. I appreciate you helping me."

"My pleasure, Ash," Oak smiled. "Just remember to keep in touch from now on, alright? In fact…you're in Cerulean, yes?"

"That's right."

"In that case, would you mind doing me a favor?"

Ash blinked. "Sure. What is it?"

"There's a colleague of mine—Bill, who lives in the Sea Cottage by the cape on Route Twenty-five. It's a few hours away from Cerulean. He's in need of a trainer that can help him catch a problem Pokemon. Do you think you could help? He tells me he will reward you for assisting him."

"Yeah, I can help him," he grinned. "What's the reward?"

Oak's eyes twinkled with amusement at the boy's eagerness. "That is something you'll have to find out for yourself. I'll tell him you'll be there in a while. Good luck to you, Ash."

* * *

It was a four hour long walk up to Route Twenty-five, during which time Ash battled several trainers. They were all about his level as far as experience went, but he won every battle that came his way. Pikachu had gotten Quick Attack down in their second match—it wasn't like it was a difficult move to learn. Sobek and Pyro got a good workout in as well, though Sobek didn't get a chance to practice Assurance and Pyro was still struggling with Dragon Rush. Ash figured that the dragon-type moves would just require time for the Charmeleon to master.

Ash finally came across the Sea Cottage where Bill lived. He'd heard of Bill before. The man had developed the Pokemon PC system that trainers used all over the world. He was heralded as a genius who had many times over earned his fame, working with big companies like Silph Co. to develop some of the most high tech devices in the world. Bill liked his privacy though, which was why he lived in the Sea Cottage.

The place was nice and quaint. Ash liked the peaceful air it held—until he noticed the police car parked out front. That got his eyebrows up. He knocked on the door hesitantly, though he was answered just a few seconds later.

He was confronted with a young man bearing a head of curly brown hair and casual clothes. This was definitely Bill—Oak had told him before the reason Bill never worked in a lab was because he couldn't stand formal attire.

"Can I help you?" Bill asked.

Ash nodded. "I think it's the other way around. Professor Oak sent me."

Bill's eyes cleared and he smiled. "Ah, so you're the trainer the good Professor was telling me about. Pleased to make your acquaintance Mr. Ketchum. I'm Bill. Please, come inside."

Ash politely stepped into the house, but paused just a few feet in. The place was a disaster of papers, books, and equipment that Ash probably couldn't even pronounce the names of. Bill scratched the back of his head. "I apologize for the mess. I've been working on twelve different projects for various companies and my own interests. As you can see things get a little…chaotic."

"It's fine," Ash offered a grin. "You should see my room when my mother isn't around."

Bill chuckled and eased up a little. "Fair enough. Now, as for why you're here, I need your help capturing a problem Pokemon. See, I conduct studies in the field on Pokemon behavior, but lately I've been harassed by a rather territorial Fearow. I suspect the bird recently evolved and all those nasty hormones running through it are giving it more of a reason to attack me than normal. However, I would like to study it. If you could capture Fearow and bring it back to me, I would greatly appreciate your hard work."

He grinned. Ash hadn't gotten to battle a Fearow before. This would be fun. "I'm in. Fearow won't know what hit it."

"Excellent!" Bill exclaimed cheerily. "I can show you Fearow's nest right after I deal with my business here."

"What's going on?" Ash asked, recalling the police car parked outside. "Did something happen?"

"Not exactly."

The pair were interrupted by a rather stern Officer Jenny, who had a large Growlithe with her. She had a Poke Ball in her hand and seemed pretty cautious with it. "I'm here to deliver a Pokemon to Bill, but it's not the friendliest creature I've ever seen."

Ash looked at the pokeball curiously. "What is it?"

"A rare and unique species I've long desired to study," Bill informed him. "An Eevee. They're hard to find in the wild and getting one isn't easy, even for a researcher like me. I told my contacts that I would take whatever I could get if they had one. Jenny here recently confiscated an Eevee and brought it to me."

Jenny scowled. "I warned you Bill, this Eevee is beyond reason. I can't release it because it actively attacks people, but I can't exactly put it up for adoption, either. You study it at your own risk. It'll take your finger off the second you try to poke it."

Bill frowned. "Surely it isn't that bad."

The Officer's scowl deepened. "You have no idea."

Ash stared at the capture device in Jenny's hand. "What happened to make Eevee like that?"

"Abuse. It was born in a Pokemon mill—a place that illegally breeds rare Pokemon and sells them on the black market. Eevee was half-starved when we got to it. Once it finished eating, it tried to take a bite out of us. One of my newest recruits had to get stitches after getting tagged by the little monster."

He frowned. Abuse could make a Pokemon vicious. Ash had never seen the actual results of it, but he had heard stories.

Bill held his hand out. "I'll take good care of it—we'll be best friends in no time!"

Jenny rolled her eyes. "Outside. I'm not setting it loose in here. It'll rip everything apart."

So outside it was.

Once they were clear of the house, Officer Jenny told Growlithe to heel and tapped the release on Eevee's Poke Ball. The little creature was released and Ash got his first good look at the notoriously rare Pokemon.

Eevee was a very small Pokemon—smaller than Pikachu, actually. It looked like a small canine with large ears similar to a fox and a bushy tail. Lush, soft brown fur covered its entire body and its eyes were like pools of liquid chocolate. It was really cute when Ash first saw it.

Then Eevee tried to blast Jenny with a Shadow Ball and all hell broke loose.

Growlithe barely intercepted the attack with Flamethrower, then Eevee lunged at it, biting furiously at the fire-type. Jenny leaped back and shouted a command for Growlithe to use Flame Wheel. Eevee dodged with surprising speed and lunged at the next person it saw—Bill.

It had jumped into the air and was aiming for Bill's face when Pyro materialized in front of the researcher and snagged the little Pokemon out of the air with his claws. The Charmeleon held Eevee up by its scruff and pointed it away from the others, growling a warning to it. Eevee spat furiously and wriggled to escape, but Pyro was not going to let go.

Jenny's scowl returned full force. "You see? I told you it was going to attack us! There's no reasoning with it, Bill. I'm sorry, but I can't give it to you."

"Please, just a little more time!" Bill begged. "I'm sure I can work with Eevee!"

"No. For one, you're not a trainer. You have no way to defend yourself if Eevee decides to get feral on you. I'm sorry Bill, but I'm going to take it back to the precinct. It has to be put down."

Ash intervened then. He could see that Eevee was a problem Pokemon, but he wasn't about to let it get killed because someone had treated it so horribly.

"I'll take Eevee."

Jenny looked at him sharply. "Out of the question—"

"—it's not. Ask Professor Oak. He can vouch for me," Ash persisted. "I'm training a Sandile right now. A male with Moxie. If I can handle him, I can handle Eevee. Let me try and train it."

Jenny hesitated, but glared at him with stern authority. "I _will_ ask Professor Oak about this, kid. If I find out you're lying just to get your hands on a rare Pokemon, you'll answer to me. Think very carefully about what you're asking."

"I'm not that kind of person, Officer," Ash promised. "Please. Just call him. I'm sure I can work with Eevee, given enough time. Don't put it down."

She glared at him for a little while longer before sighing. "Fine. I'll be calling the Professor while you two are out on your little Fearow hunt. Don't let the bird kill you before you get back. I don't like putting a Pokemon down, but I will do so in this case if you aren't able to train it. This Eevee is dangerous."

"All Pokemon are dangerous if they need to be," he replied. Ash glanced at Eevee, who was still struggling in Pyro's grip. He certainly had his work cut out for him.

Jenny shook her head. "I still think you're crazy, but alright. I'll give you Eevee's Poke Ball once the Professor tells me you're alright to handle it. For now, it stays with me."

She recalled Eevee into its Poke Ball and went over to her vehicle. Bill looked crestfallen, but Ash offered him a smile and tried to make him feel better. "Hey, where's that Fearow nest?"

That managed to make him brighten up a bit. "Ah, yes. This way!"

* * *

"Now I should warn you, Ash. Fearow are big, scary Pokemon," Bill cautioned him. "Don't be afraid when you see it."

They were hiding behind some shrubs to stay out of the bird's sight, but Ash took one look at the Fearow roosting in its nest on the cliff face they had walked to and snorted. He had seen scary Pokemon before—this one was nothing. It didn't even hold a candle to Giovanni's Rhyperior.

Pikachu was snickering at the Fearow. Ash grinned and scratched the electric type under his chin. "So, you just want us to catch it?"

"Yes, please."

Ash looked at Pikachu and the mouse's expression of mischievous delight was obvious. He smirked. "Want to handle this one, buddy?"

Pikachu sniggered and nodded gleefully, then ran out into the open. Ash followed him out and looked up at Fearow, who had yet to notice them. He looked at Pikachu and pointed at the bird. "Stun it with Thunder Shocks and avoid whatever comes with Quick Attack. It might have only just evolved, but I'd rather you not get hit by that beak. Other than that, do your thing."

The mouse grinned wildly.

Five seconds later, Fearow let out a shriek of surprise as a Thunder Shock plowed into it. The bird whipped its head towards them as it stared, stunned that someone had attacked _it_ instead of the other way around. Pikachu giggled hysterically at Fearow and stuck his tongue out at the bird for falling prey to his prank.

Fearow screamed furiously and lunged out of its nest, aiming its sharp beak for Pikachu's body. Pikachu waited, sniggering all the while until Fearow was just a few feet away. He then darted to the side with Quick Attack, giving the bird nothing but dirt to impact.

Ash winced at Fearow slammed into the ground full speed and tumbled across the grass. Fearow squawked in confusion and bewilderment, dazed from its crash. Pikachu hopped onto its back and the bird managed to turn and look at the mouse dumbly for a second. Then Pikachu began to zap the target of his mischief senseless and Fearow finally got its act together.

A gust of wind blew over Ash as Fearow tried to fly up off the ground. Pikachu continued to hammer it with Thunder Shocks, but the bird stubbornly refused to go down again. Ash watched the madness above him for a few seconds before shouting. "Pikachu, Nuzzle! Paralyze it and bring it back down here."

The large electric shocks disappeared and Fearow grew puzzled for a moment. Then it's muscles clenched and the bird dropped out of the sky with a startled screech.

Pikachu leapt off of Fearow's back before it hit the ground and landed in Ash's arms. The electric mouse was still giggling in delight and Ash grinned at him. Pikachu was having the time of his life pranking Fearow in the middle of battle.

The bird was well and truly immobilized, but its beak was still stabbing the ground around it. Ash figured it still had enough energy to resist capture and gave Pikachu a final order. "Jump into the air with Quick Attack, then come down on it with Volt Tackle. That should put it down."

Pikachu nodded and left his arms to return to the ground. He ran towards Fearow to build up speed with Quick Attack, then made an almost vertical leap. As he reached his peak, Pikachu shrouded himself in a cloak of electricity and began to dive towards his opponent. The bird didn't even see its tormentor coming.

Fearow took the Volt Tackle to the back of its head and promptly collapsed, paralyzed and unconscious.

Ash hefted a Poke Ball, threw it at the bird, and Fearow disappeared in a flash of red light. The device hit the ground and wriggled for a few moments, but clicked quickly, signaling that Fearow had been captured.

"Alright!" Ash exclaimed. "Nice going, Pikachu. Fearow didn't stand a chance."

Pikachu shook off the recoil of Volt Tackle and gave Ash a wave with his tiny paw. He didn't look very tired at all. Ash remembered when he had been defeated by Leaf's Spearow and realized how much stronger he was after evolving from Pichu.

"That was marvelous!" Bill exclaimed. Ash handed him Fearow's Poke Ball and the researcher took it gratefully. "Such talent! Pikachu defeated its opponent with so little effort!"

"It wasn't too strong," Ash told him. "It's like you said—it probably evolved only recently. I doubt it knows how to fight well right now. Pikachu was just playing with it."

Pikachu sniggered gleefully and Bill chuckled. "Well, I'm grateful regardless. Come now, let's return to my cottage. Officer Jenny should have finished speaking with Professor Oak by now, I reckon, and I still have a reward to give you!"

* * *

Jenny was waiting for them when they returned. She eyed the Poke Ball in Bill's hand and nodded. "I see you got our troublemaker. That's good. You probably saved me some trouble, kid."

"You're welcome," Ash replied. "It wasn't too bad, actually."

"The only time I'll ever hear those words regarding a Fearow is from a Pokemon trainer," Jenny grumbled. "Anyways, I talked with Oak."

Ash tensed and waited for the verdict. Jenny pulled out Eevee's Poke Ball and held it out. "It's yours—for now. But if Eevee gets caught attacking someone unprovoked again…"

"I'll make it work," he promised. She nodded and handed him the Poke Ball. Ash set it on his belt and made a mental note to check on Eevee once he was far away from civilization. He dipped his head to Jenny. "Thank you. I'll take good care of Eevee."

"Any care is better than the care it got at the Pokemon mill," Jenny said bluntly. She shook her head at the thought and made her way back to her car. "Well, I have a job to get to. See you, Bill. Good luck, kid."

Ash and Bill waved her goodbye and then faced each other once the good Officer had driven off.

"Well, I wish you luck with Eevee, but I'm sure you're wondering what I've got for you, yes?"

"Just a bit," Ash admitted.

Bill smiled and walked into his house. He came back out a minute later with a small parcel. "Here you are—like Christmas in the Spring."

He opened the box and gaped at the contents—in his hands were five Ultra Balls and a PokeNav. Ash didn't know much about the latter, but he knew that both items were ridiculously expensive and not something the average trainer could purchase.

Ash stared at Bill. "Whoa, whoa—I only caught a freshly evolved Fearow for you! Isn't this over doing it?"

Bill chuckled. "You forget Ash, I've got more money than I know what to do with. This is nothing. The Ultra Balls I'm sure you know what to do with—I figure if you can take out Fearow so easily, you'll probably need these for when you meet something with more bite. Not every wild Pokemon will drop as easily as our troublesome little friend. And I want you to have this as well."

He handed him a black Poke Ball that Ash didn't recognize. Bill filled him in. "It's a Luxury Ball—designed for making a Pokemon more friendly. If you like, I can transfer Eevee into this from its current Poke Ball. The poor little guy probably needs some extra love."

Ash smiled. "I'd really appreciate that."

"Right, then I can get to that while I explain to you the features of the PokeNav," Bill said as he led Ash inside, chatting all the while.

* * *

After Eevee had been transferred to the Luxury Ball and he said farewell to Bill (both following a hefty discussion of the PokeNav's features), Ash headed back to Cerulean City. It was evening before he made it there, but rather than go into the Pokemon Center immediately, Ash went to the practice field and sent out his team.

Pyro, Pikachu, and Sobek waited for him to speak. Ash smiled at his three partners. "Okay guys, I've got a couple of things to say. First off, we're challenging the Cerulean City Gym tomorrow. The Gym Leader there uses water-types, so Pikachu is going to be our best bet."

The mouse puffed up proudly. Pyro rolled his eyes and Sobek growled lightly, but didn't complain. Apparently, the croc didn't mind not having to fight water Pokemon. Ash went on. "From what I've heard, it's probably going to be another two-on-two battle. Pyro, you'll be fighting as well. Sorry, but we don't have any other options right now. You three are the only trained Pokemon I have."

Pyro grinned, baring his fangs. The prospect of fighting water-types didn't deter the flame lizard at all. He swished his fiery tail back and forth a few times and hissed eagerly. Ash smirked at his starter and nodded. "Glad to see you raring to go. You'll need to be."

"The second thing I have to talk about is our newest team mate," Ash told them. "It's an Eevee—the one we had to restrain at the Sea Cottage. Remember?"

Pikachu and Pyro nodded, though Sobek didn't because he had yet to meet Eevee. Ash held out the Luxury Ball so they could all get a whiff of Eevee's scent. "Listen, Eevee was abused by its previous owners, so I need you guys to be on your best behavior. If it tries to attack us, restrain it, but don't hurt it. We have to convince Eevee that we're its friends. If we can't get through to it, Jenny will have to take it away and…well, let's not talk about what might happen if it comes to that."

His team made sounds in a chorus of agreement. Ash took a deep breath and held his finger over the release button. "Get ready. This probably isn't going to go so well right off the bat."

He set Eevee loose.

The little Pokemon's ears twitched the second it was released. It looked around warily before spotting Ash and growling with a ferocity that should not have belonged to such a small creature. Ash held his hands out to his side, showing Eevee that he was unarmed.

"Hey, it's okay. I—"

Eevee leaped at him, snapping like a rabid animal. Pyro quickly snagged Eevee out of the air like he had before and held it away from them. The normal-type wriggled furiously and hissed, biting on empty air. Ash sighed.

This would not be fun.

"Eevee, calm down," Ash tried calmly. Eevee snarled at him and snapped again, but it couldn't move well with Pyro holding it up by the scruff of its neck. The boy frowned at it. "Can you just give me a few seconds?"

A randomly launched Shadow Ball was his answer, though the attack fortunately didn't hit anything important. Pikachu looked ready to zap the little canine at the first sign it was escaping Pyro and Sobek had his fangs slightly bared. Pyro was just doing his best to keep a steady grip on the wriggling creature and avoid getting bitten himself.

Ash chewed his lip worriedly. Eevee wasn't responding at all. He decided that talking was out of the question. He'd have to win Eevee over with a different method.

He pulled an Oran Berry out of his bag and cautiously moved around to where Eevee could see him, but not hit him with one of those nasty Shadow Balls. "Are you hungry?"

Eevee took one look at the food and quieted for a moment. It glared at Ash furiously, as if he had stolen the berry. He carefully held the food closer to Eevee and almost jumped when it snatched the berry from his hands with surprising quickness. Ash checked his fingers, but hadn't been bitten.

"Pyro, put Eevee down."

Pyro shot him a wary look, but did as Ash asked. He didn't let Eevee go, though. His claws remained on the canine's scruff in case it made another attempt at hurting his trainer.

Eevee finished the berry in record time and glared at Ash again. It didn't immediately spit a Shadow Ball at him though, so he decided it was progress, however small. He was not, however, naive enough to think Eevee was going to let him speak again. So he offered another Oran Berry and the small Pokemon took it without a growl. Ash patiently fed Eevee until it turned its nose up at the food and gave him a cold stare.

"Feeling better?" Ash asked cautiously. When Eevee did not answer, he nodded. "I'll take that as a yes. Alright, Eevee, I've got some things to tell you. Will you listen?"

The cold stare didn't change, but Ash figured that was as good as he was going to get. At least he still had Eevee's attention. "Okay, here's the thing. You're a part of my team now. I'm your trainer—your friend. These guys are the rest of my team. The Charmeleon is Pyro, the Sandile is Sobek, and then Pikachu. All I want is for you to feel better, alright? You don't have to be friends with us right now. You don't even have to like us. I just want you to give us a chance, okay?"

Eevee's eyes narrowed. Ash smiled at it in what he hoped was friendliness and not hesitance. "We just need one percent of your trust. We'll earn the rest. Can you give us just that? Just a speck of trust. Because if you can, then I promise I'll treat you well. I'll take care of you and train you if you like so you can become strong. Please?"

Eevee did not react for a long time. After what was probably minutes, the small creature slowly, fractionally nodded. Its cold glare did not let up, but Eevee had given Ash the tiny amount of trust he had pleaded for. He sighed in relief. That was all he needed right now.

"Thank you. Okay, Pyro, let Eevee go."

Pyro made a light growling sound that wasn't quite aggressive, then let Eevee loose from his claws. Eevee spat at the Charmeleon, but didn't attack. Instead, it looked away pointedly, ignoring the larger Pokemon as best it could. That seemed to annoy Pyro, but he listened to Ash and didn't object.

Ash took his Pokedex out and let Eevee look at it. "This is going to tell me a little bit about you, okay? You don't have to do anything."

Eevee huffed and looked away from him. Ash shrugged at the reaction and tapped the scan feature, listening as the Pokedex pulled up Eevee's information.

_Eevee, the Evolution Pokemon. A rare Pokemon that adapts to harsh conditions by taking on different evolutionary forms. Thanks to its unstable genetic makeup, this special Pokemon has more potential evolutions than any other species in the world. It reacts strongly to unique energy emitted from natural objects._

_This Eevee is female and knows the moves: Quick Attack, Shadow Ball, Swift, Bite, Refresh, and Helping Hand. Its ability is Adaptability, which increases the power of STAB moves._

Ash whistled. "Wow, Eevee, you're pretty strong."

Eevee didn't react aside from a mild growl. The anger was actually cute rather than threatening at this point, but Ash wasn't willing to let Eevee know that. He'd only just earned a fraction of her trust. Insulting her would only lose him that precious fraction.

He looked at Eevee again. "Do you want a nickname?"

She didn't react in the slightest this time and Ash withheld a sigh. Of course not. She hardly trusted him at all—giving her a name wasn't even an option at this point. He put that aside and put another question to her. "Would you like to sleep outside of your Poke Ball, or inside of it?"

At that, Eevee looked at the Luxury Ball and jerked her head towards the capture device. Ash nodded. "Alright then. I'm going to recall you now. I'll let you out tomorrow for breakfast, okay?"

Eevee ignored him again, but he didn't take offense. Ash just smiled again and murmured gently. "Goodnight, Eevee. Sweet dreams."

With that, the small Pokemon was recalled to her Luxury Ball and Ash set it on his belt again. He let out a tense breath he wasn't aware he'd been holding. His team relaxed with him. Ash nodded to them. "Thanks for behaving, you guys. Eevee is going to take some working on. Do your best to get along with her, alright? I'm sure she'll come around eventually."

His team grunted acknowledgement and Ash sighed. "I think we're good for training today. Let's get inside the Pokemon Center and get some sleep. We've got a gym battle tomorrow."

* * *

The next day, Ash stood in front of the Cerulean City Gym. Pikachu was perched on his shoulder and stared at the building with him. It was definitely a lot different from Pewter's gym—this one looked more like an entertainment facility than one meant for Pokemon battles. Ash actually double checked to make sure he was in the right place, but sure enough, this was it.

His morning had been good—for the most part. Breakfast was…interesting. When Ash released Eevee, she almost attacked him again before remembering that she had given him a fraction of her trust. Once he was certain she wasn't going to try and bite his fingers off, Ash gave her a bowl of Pokemon food to eat with the others. However, Eevee took the bowl in her jaws and carried it away to eat alone. After eating, she just stared at him stonily until they went outside to warm up for the gym.

The entire time Pyro, Pikachu, and Sobek trained with Ash, Eevee just watched. He thought for a bit that the little Pokemon had confused herself with a Noctowl—all that staring was not typical of any member of her species. He offered Eevee a chance to join them, but she just continued to stare and did not react otherwise.

When Ash was certain they were ready, he recalled his team (minus Pikachu, of course) and set off for the gym.

He walked inside and immediately saw a pretty teenage girl with dark blue hair sleeping on the front desk. Ash went over and carefully rapped the wood, startling her awake.

"I'm up! I wasn't sleeping! Not at all!" she stammered. The girl blinked at him in surprise. "Oh, hello. Who are you?"

"I'm Ash," he told her. "I'm here for a gym battle?"

Her eyes cleared and she smirked. "I'm Violet. You actually came at the perfect time! Now Daisy and Lily can't sleep in either. I'll show them they can't just make me watch the desk whenever they don't want to."

She hit a button and spoke into a speaker system. "We've got a challenger! Daisy, Lily, get to the referee box! Runt, get your team ready!"

Ash heard an indignant yell from the room behind the entrance area and smirked. Violet giggled and gestured to a door on the right. "Go in through there. The battlefield should be ready. We don't have any shows until noon."

He nodded and went that way, but paused when Violet followed after him. She winked casually. "We don't get many challengers in the morning, anyways. Besides, the battles here don't last too long. If anyone walks in looking for a fight, there's a nice couch for them to wait on."

Ash didn't question it. He didn't work at the gym—all he wanted was to challenge it.

The battle room was an impressive construct. Bleachers surrounded a huge swimming pool, with several circular floats for land dwelling Pokemon to fight from. It wouldn't be fair for only water Pokemon to be capable of battling here, after all. Ash would've really been screwed if that was the case—he didn't own _any_ water-types.

As he watched, two girls with orange and pink hair about Violet's age walked out of a room to the side of the field, groaning tiredly. Violet smiled at them mischievously. "Good morning, dear sisters!"

"Shut up," the girl with orange hair groaned. She was rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and pouted when she looked at Ash. "And you, what kind of trainer is up at the crack of dawn for a gym battle?!"

"It's like ten o'clock," Ash pointed out with a smirk. "What trainer _isn't_ up?"

Violet sniggered as the girl puffed her cheek up. "He's got a point, Daisy. Besides, you were on referee duty anyways."

"Then what on earth did you wake _me_ up for?!" Demanded the third girl.

"If us two can't sleep, neither can you, Lily," Daisy retorted. "It's only fair. Go sit on the bleachers or something."

Lily did just that. Ash looked between the three of them and frowned. "So who am I battling?"

"That would be me."

He glanced across the field as a girl who was barely older than him pulled herself out of the pool—he hadn't even noticed her swimming—and turned to face him. "I'm Misty. I'm the Gym Leader here. My sisters are…hey!"

Ash recognized her immediately. "You were the girl at Mt. Moon. The one with the Golduck and Starmie."

Misty's jaw dropped. "What the heck are you doing here? Weren't you hospitalized?"

"No. I got discharged like two hours after the fight ended," Ash replied. "Where did you go? I didn't even see you leave Mt. Moon."

"My Golduck took one of that Crobat's bites and had to get to a Pokemon Center," Misty scowled as she remembered. "I waited until I was sure you were going to be okay, though. It wouldn't have felt right if you got killed—you saved all of us back there."

Ash nodded. That was reasonable to him. Meanwhile, Violet, Daisy, and Lily were staring between the two of them in bewilderment, all sleepiness forgotten.

"Um, you two know each other?" Asked Lily.

Misty glanced at her sisters. "Yeah. Remember what I told you guys yesterday? This is that kid that set me and the other trainers free from Team Rocket in Mt. Moon. He's the only reason Golduck and Starmie didn't get stolen from me."

"Whoa, really?" Violet stared at Ash in surprise. "Thanks, kid! If something happened to Misty, like, we would've had to actually start acting like Gym Leaders!"

"The gym is in _your_ names! You should be the ones battling, anyways!" Misty barked indignantly.

At that, Pikachu sniggered. He found some humor in people arguing. Ash smirked at his partner's antics and scratched him under his chin while the sisters went at it.

Daisy rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh. You know you like the gym battles more than us."

"Oh, shut up," Misty scowled. She rubbed her forehead and dried her face of pool water with a towel, then looked at Ash. "Look, I'm grateful for saving me and the other trainers back there, but don't expect me to hold back against you."

Ash grinned. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

Misty's scowl turned into a fierce smile. "I like that attitude. This'll be fun. What's your name? How many badges do you have?"

"Ash Ketchum, one badge," he answered. "Are you ready to battle?"

"Duh. I practically run this gym. I'm never _not_ ready," Misty pulled a couple of Poke Balls out of the Leader's box on the other side of the field, then faced Ash. "I hope you're prepared to deal with my water-types, Ash. They might be beautiful, but if you aren't careful, they'll tear you apart."

"Bring it on," Ash challenged.

Daisy made her way to the referee's stand and began announcing. "This gym battle will now begin. Both sides will use only two Pokemon and the battle will be over when either side is unable to continue the fight. Furthermore, there will be no substitutions allowed. The challenger will have the first attack."

Misty threw her Poke Ball up in the air and it released a fish with white and red scales. Ash recognized it as a Goldeen and immediately sent out Pyro. His starter landed on one of the circular floating platforms and spat fire into the air to announce his presence.

His opponent arched her eyebrow. "A Charmeleon? Ash, you do know that fire-types are weak to water-types, right?"

"I know," Ash admitted. "But I've got a plan. Besides, Pyro can win this."

The Charmeleon growled agreement and Misty smirked. "Suit yourself. Just try not to fall into my pool, or Goldeen will have a field day with your lizard."

Daisy swiped her hand down. "Begin!"

"Dragon Dance," Ash said immediately. Pyro immediately clenched his muscles and began to charge up dragon type energy, though it was slow as always. Ash wasn't betting on the boost immediately, though—he was aiming for something else.

Misty scoffed. "It doesn't even look like you can use Dragon Dance properly. This'll be quick. Goldeen, Water Pulse!"

Ash watched as Goldeen leapt out of the pool and fired a sphere of liquid water at Pyro. He shouted immediately. "Destroy it with Metal Claw!"

Pyro's claws flashed metallic silver and he slashed at the sphere, tearing it apart. His attack blocked most of the Water Pulse, though he still suffered a bit of damage before continuing to boost himself with the slow Dragon Dance.

"You're still trying that? Goldeen, fire Water Pulse repeatedly!"

"Metal Claw, back to back! Rip them apart!"

Goldeen began to launch multiple Water Pulses, bombarding its opponent with the spheres. Pyro's claws remained silver as he slashed at the attacks and tore them to pieces, though it was obvious from the bits that still hit him that he was taking damage. Ash wasn't sure how many Water Pulses he could take before they started to wear at him, but he didn't think it would be too high a number.

He was relieved when Dragon Dance finally pulled through and Pyro's reflexes became quicker, his attacks stronger. Ash grinned and put his next string of commands into play. "Start moving to the other platforms! Try to hit it with Ember!"

Pyro rushed away from the next Water Pulse and leapt to the nearest floating circle of land. He spat embers at Goldeen wherever it popped up, though the attacks did little more than harass the fish. Ash doubted Goldeen could actually feel the effects of Ember at all. He was just biding his time."

Misty seemed to be getting annoyed by how long Pyro had stayed in the fight and shouted. "Goldeen, give it a Horn Attack! Knock it into the pool."

Ash smirked. Misty was fiery, but getting impatient would be her downfall in this fight.

Goldeen lunged out of the water and aimed its horn at Pyro. Ash saw his opening. "Pyro, duck and use Metal Claw!"

Using the quickness granted to him by Dragon Dance, Pyro dove underneath Goldeen's horn, leaving him directly below the fish. His claws flashed silver, then Goldeen made a gurgling cry as Metal Claw ripped at its scales. The steel-type move wasn't very effective typing-wise, but the attack boost Pyro had gotten from Dragon Dance meant it dealt a little damage. As Ash watched, Pyro's tail flame suddenly flared and he grinned. Metal Claw had just given them an unexpected bonus as well. The extra attack power wasn't necessary for his plan, but he would take it.

Goldeen hit the water hard and seemed to be momentarily stunned. Misty quickly shouted to her Pokemon. "Get it together! Drill Run!"

The fish suddenly leapt out of the water and rotated the horn on its head like a drill before rushing Pyro. Ash had no idea what the technique was, but he continued his stream of commands—Goldeen was still a little stunned and moving a bit slower. "Pyro, quick! Jump to the next platform on the right!"

Pyro did as he instructed and immediately turned to face Goldeen, who was still in midair and appeared startled that its opponent was now no longer in attacking range. Ash had a chance and he was going for it. "Dragon Rush!"

The Charmeleon's irises narrowed to slits as he lunged at Goldeen and smashed into it ruthlessly. The Dragon Rush had landed a direct hit and there was no question—Goldeen had _definitely_ felt that.

But Misty still had some tricks up here sleeve and Goldeen wasn't unconscious yet. "Water Pulse!"

Before hitting the surface of the pool, Goldeen managed to turn and shot another sphere of water at Pyro, who was unable to block or avoid it this time. The move hit just as cleanly as Pyro's and caused the Charmeleon to roar in pain. Ash watched his starter land harshly on the platform and winced himself. That could not have felt good.

Pyro hauled himself to his feet, panting. He was tired, but Goldeen looked exhausted as well. Taking Dragon Rush—however incomplete it was—never felt good for anything that couldn't resist dragon-type moves. It was just that blatantly powerful an attack.

Misty bit her lip and commanded her Pokemon. "Get in close and finish it with Horn Attack. You're almost there, Goldeen!"

Goldeen swam as fast as it could and leapt out of the water to hit Pyro. Its horn made a clean hit to the Charmeleon's chest, but it wasn't enough—Pyro was more furious than ever. He grabbed Goldeen by the horn with his claws and then threw it into the solid platform beneath them.

He was relieved Pyro had survived that, but frankly Ash didn't think he could take another hit. "Pyro, finish it! Metal Claw!"

Misty was shouting frantic commands for Goldeen to get back in the pool, but her orders cut off with a wince the second Pyro's claws slammed into Goldeen's head and knocked it unconscious. The fish's desperate flailing ceased and it went still.

Ash sighed in relief. That was the hardest part of the battle done. Pyro sat down hard on the platform as Goldeen was recalled and groaned. He looked at Ash, who nodded back with a smile. "Good job, buddy. Come back and take a break."

He recalled Pyro. There was just no way that the Charmeleon could last in a fight against another of Misty's water-types. They were strong in their own right and Ash doubted she would fall for the same trick again.

Misty put Goldeen's Poke Ball aside and gave him an impressed look. "I gotta say, I didn't see you beating Goldeen with a Charmeleon, even if it was close. None of the fresh trainers I get here have done that before. You're pretty good."

"Thanks," Ash replied. "Ready for round two?"

"As if you have to ask!" She exclaimed. Misty hurled her second Poke Ball into the air. "Starmie, you're up!"

The water-type which appeared on the platform nearest to Misty was the same one he'd seen in Mt. Moon during the battle against Team Rocket. Ash knew Starmie was pretty strong, but he hadn't gotten a chance to really see what it could do. Regardless, there was only one choice for this fight.

"Go get him, buddy," Ash looked at Pikachu on his shoulder and grinned. Pikachu smirked back and jumped straight onto the nearest platform.

Misty smiled. "That's more like it. So you do have some brains."

"Well, I couldn't let Pikachu do all the work, now could I?" He smiled back. "Get in close with Quick Attack!"

Pikachu darted across the floating platforms, a yellow blur of speed. Misty knew better than to put Starmie in the water against an electric-type and shouted. "Rapid Spin. Smack it around!"

Starmie's jewel flashed and it began to spin almost like a helicopter. The star shaped Pokemon flew at Pikachu, who dodged its initial charge with Quick Attack and whipped around to watch Starmie continue flying.

Ash frowned. He didn't think Starmie could fly. That affected his plans a little, but not too badly. "Thunder Shock! Knock it out of the air."

Pikachu began to fire bolts of electricity at the flying water type, which dodged by effortlessly shifting position in the air. It was infuriating how easily Starmie avoided the attacks, but Pikachu was persistent. He eventually tagged it with a shock and momentarily stunned his opponent.

Misty wasn't having any of that. "Hydro Pump!"

A torrent of water suddenly blasted from the end of Starmie's first set of arms and whipped all over the field while it continued Rapid Spin. Ash realized there was no chance of Pikachu dodging it and shouted. "Thunder Shock into the Hydro Pump!"

Pikachu discharged another blast of electricity just as a jet of Hydro Pump slammed into him. The shock immediately traveled up the water and got another hit into Starmie, but Pikachu was sent flying into the pool.

Misty went into action immediately. "Starmie, now! Recover!"

Ash's eyes widened. That wasn't good at all. He had no idea Starmie knew Recover—the move was entirely uncommon and incredibly useful. In no time flat, Starmie would be fully healed of the damage it had taken. Pikachu was only just clambering onto the nearest platform when the gem glowed and healing energy began to flow over Starmie.

He immediately set about trying to stop the healing process. "Pikachu, Thunder Shock! Don't let it heal!"

Pikachu fired a surge of thunder at Starmie, but it continued to spin and avoided the move. Ash mentally swore when the healing energy ceased a few moments later and Starmie was good as new.

Misty smirked. "Swift."

There was no dodging that move, Ash knew. Swift was a unique normal-type move that was able to hone in on opponents, chasing their energy signature until they impacted it or hit something else. It couldn't be avoided, but it could be countered.

"Thunder Shock!" He snapped. "Blow them away."

Pikachu did just that—his electric shocks destroyed Swift, only for him to get blindsided by Starmie and receive a nasty Rapid Spin to the back for his trouble.

Ash gritted his teeth. Misty was tearing him to pieces. She knew how to take out electric-types and had it down to an art. Starmie was systematically destroying Pikachu and hadn't even gotten a scratch now that it had healed itself.

He watched as Misty repeated her Swift/Rapid Spin strategy and knew he had only one chance. Pikachu would not last against the relentless assault. If he messed up here, he was going to lose.

Pikachu destroyed Swift again and Starmie lunged at him with Rapid Spin. There was no chance to dodge, but there was an opportunity to counter.

"Nuzzle!" Ash shouted desperately.

The second Starmie smashed into Pikachu again, the mouse released a small, focused shock of electricity from his cheek pouches. The shock hit its target and while it didn't do much damage, it gave Ash what he needed—paralysis.

Starmie's limbs froze up and it skidded across the platform, almost to the water. Misty saw the sparks dancing on her Pokemon's jewel and scowled. "Refresh!"

"Not happening!" Ash roared. "Thunder Shock!"

Pikachu glared at Starmie and blasted it with righteous fury, stopping the water-type's status healing process in its tracks. Starmie's gem flashed wildly with pain and electrical surges, but it was trying to get Refresh to work regardless of the damage it took. If it could get back into Rapid Spin and Swift, that was it.

Ash had no intention of letting Starmie have that chance.

"Volt Tackle!"

Pikachu cloaked himself in lighting before charging Starmie like an electrified missile. He slammed dead-center into the jewel in the center of its body and sent the water-type flying. Starmie crashed into the wall of the gym and its jewel flickered a few more times before going dim. Pikachu wilted as the recoil of Volt Tackle took effect, weakening him further, but he did not faint.

Daisy called the fight. "Starmie is unable to battle! Pikachu wins! Victory goes to the challenger!"

Ash exhaled in relief. That had been way closer than his fight against Brock. Even with his type advantage, Pikachu had very nearly lost. The mouse was exhausted from his fight against Starmie, so Ash recalled him quickly to put him into suspended animation. He held the Poke Ball up and smiled at it. "You did great, buddy. I'm so proud of you."

Misty recalled Starmie and walked around the pool to meet up with him. She sighed and shook her head. "I guess I have to work on our strategy against electric-types. Paralysis still gets Starmie."

"I can't believe how powerful it was," Ash complimented her. He was actually amazed that Starmie had fought so well. "It was like I wasn't even fighting a water-type. Pikachu didn't take it out nearly as easily as I thought he would."

"Well, Starmie is one of my main team," Misty admitted with a smile. "It's not every day someone manages to work around our electric-type strategy. I didn't expect Volt Tackle either. That's not a common move, even for Pikachu. The only other person I've seen use that is Surge, and I only see him a few times throughout the year."

Ash grinned at the praise. He really was proud of Pikachu for his hard work in learning Volt Tackle.

Violet, Daisy, and Lily were suddenly crowding around them.

"That was like, totally awesome!" Lily squealed. "Your Pokemon are so well trained! It's hard to believe you've only got one—oops, two badges!"

"You should definitely come back for a rematch sometime," Daisy suggested. "We battle too, you know! Besides, the runt has stronger Pokemon that she uses for more powerful opponents."

Misty scowled. "Don't call me runt!"

"Sure thing, runt," Violet said playfully. Misty rolled her eyes and muttered something under her breath. Violet pulled out a small case containing a badge in the shape of a blue teardrop and offered it to Ash. "Here you go—the Cascade Badge. This shows that you won here, blah blah blah. You know how it is."

Ash took the badge gratefully and pocketed it. "Thank you. That was a great battle, Misty."

"I could say the same," she agreed as her smile returned. Misty paused for a second. "Actually, come with me to the front desk for a moment. I have something for you."

He blinked, but Daisy sniggered. "Ooh, you gonna give your hero a kiss?"

Misty went scarlet and glared at her sister furiously. "No! Now shut up and go back to bed!"

"Ugh, you're no fun. Fine, whatever," Daisy huffed before leaving. Lily and Violet snickered, but didn't antagonize their youngest sister any further.

Misty led Ash to the front desk and pulled out a drawer with disks lined up inside. He recognized them as TMs and blinked when she offered him one. "Here. I owe you for saving me from Team Rocket. This is the least I can do."

Not one to question a potentially priceless gift, Ash took the disc and looked back at her. "What move is it?"

"It's Scald. It's a water-type move that hits the target with boiling hot water. A lot of the time it'll burn whatever you hit," she smirked. "Neither Goldeen or Starmie can use it right now, but I've got a few other Pokemon that have it down. Besides, we've got a couple of Scald TMs. You might not be able to use it now, but keep it for when you catch a water-type, alright?"

Ash nodded and grinned. "Thanks. I'm sure I'll use it at some point."

She chuckled and offered a hand. "I hope so. Goodbye, Ash. Good luck on your journey—and like my annoying sisters said, come back for a rematch when you get stronger. I'd like to fight you again."

Ash shook her hand and left the Cerulean Gym, setting his eyes south for Vermillion City and its notorious electric-type Gym Leader—Lieutenant Surge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woohoo, another chapter. Still minor changers thus far. 
> 
> Here's our team!
> 
> Ash Ketchum current team (on hand):
> 
> -Pyro (Male Charmeleon)
> 
> -Pikachu (Male)
> 
> -Sobek (Male Sandile)
> 
> -Eevee (Female)


	5. Fierce Lightning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ash and Gary meet up. Rival battle ensues. Ash goes fishing, sort of. Ash fights Surge. Surge is a monster.

_Chapter Five: Fierce Lightning_

Ash watched as Sobek faced off their opponent's Drowzee, which had actually put up more of a fight than he'd expected. Even though the psychic-type couldn't affect its adversary with any of its best moves, it had a nasty Pound attack and kept spitting Poison Gas. Sobek had just taken to digging underground and snapping at it whenever he got a chance. Drowzee was, at this point, playing an unfortunate game of whack-a-mole that involved the "mole" biting back quite viciously.

The other trainer seemed frustrated that Drowzee couldn't defeat its opponent, though Ash thought it was likely he had just made the wrong call because Sandile were rare in Kanto. His opponent probably had never seen one before and knew nothing about them.

He watched Drowzee get bit again from underground and decided enough was enough. "Wrap it up, Sobek. Ant Pit."

Drowzee looked around for a second as the bites stopped, then it froze when its body began to sink into the ground. Sand Tomb had it trapped—now Sobek would finish it.

Ash winced as the Sandile erupted from the ground and snapped his jaws harshly around Drowzee's body. Sobek began to shake his head ruthlessly and their opponent recalled the poor psychic-type quickly. He looked a little pale, but paid out the prize money he owed and quickly left.

Ash smirked as he watched the kid run off and knelt to rub Sobek under his jaw. The Sandile rumbled happily at the contact as his trainer praised him. "Good job, Sobek. You're ready to take on some stronger opponents, aren't you?"

Sobek hissed agreement and Ash chuckled. "You'll get your chance at Vermillion. Let's hurry up and get there, okay?"

The ground-type nodded and Ash recalled him. He stood back up and stretched, then continued on his way towards Vermillion City along Route Six.

Ash had been making his way to the port city for nearly two weeks now. He'd briefly stopped in Saffron to call his mother and stock up on supplies, but for the most part he just wanted to battle Lieutenant Surge as soon as he could. He had considered going to the Saffron Gym to challenge Sabrina, though he thought better of it after hearing about a trainer with five badges getting completely swept by her infamous Alakazam. Ash knew better than to pick a fight he couldn't win, especially against a Gym Leader as powerful as Sabrina. He would wait until he had at least five badges before challenging her.

So far, he had spent his time on the road racking up experience for his team and money from the trainers they defeated. Ash wasn't desperate for cash, but if he wanted to buy TMs at some point to buff his team's move pool, he would need as much money as he could get. Most of the trainers they took on were beaten by his Pokemon, but Ash did lose to a man that had been a trainer for nearly ten years. The guy had a Primeape that he just wasn't able to defeat with his current strength. It had been odd for Ash, losing like that. He hadn't lost many Pokemon battles before. Still, it was a good experience.

Not to mention it got Pyro fired up even more for their next round of training.

Ash had been working on his Pokemon's move pool while making their way towards Vermillion. Right now, Pyro was working on learning Flamethrower, Slash, and Smokescreen. The latter two were fairly easy and he'd already gotten them down for the most part, but Flamethrower was taking some work. It required a lot more firepower than Pyro had ever had to handle before. It would just take time.

Flamethrower had more progress than Dragon Rush or Dragon Dance, that was for sure. Nearly two months into their journey and Pyro still couldn't get a grip on the frustrating dragon-type moves.

Pikachu was still practicing Thunder Wave. Nuzzle had been easy, but Thunder Wave was a long-range move that required precise aim. Pikachu had so far gotten away with just blasting their opponents with electric shocks, but he needed to work on moves that needed pinpoint accuracy to be effective. Aside from Thunder Wave, Ash had been trying to teach Pikachu Thunderbolt as well. That was coming along nicely. It was a step up from Thunder Shock, and, like Pyro's Flamethrower, simply required practice for Pikachu to build up the power necessary to learn it.

He still couldn't do much with Sobek—not until the crocodile evolved. All Ash had managed to do was teach Sobek Crunch (which was ridiculously easy once Sobek got his jaws into something that took actual effort to bite through). He did manage to get the Sandile to learn Assurance, however. Foul Play was taking time, but that wasn't going to be too difficult.

The problem with Sobek now was his limited move pool. It consisted solely of dark and ground-type moves along with Fire Fang and Thunder Fang. That left him (and Pikachu as well) pretty sore for variation.

Part of the reason Ash was saving up for TMs so desperately was because his team _needed_ those extra moves. They had a strong variety of attacks they could learn naturally, but TMs would open up a whole new chapter for them in battles. Ash really wanted to get his hands on a Dragon Claw TM for Pyro and Sobek when he evolved, as well as Iron Tail for Pikachu. But for now, his team was making great progress.

Well, most of them. Ash hadn't gotten anywhere with Eevee.

The little Pokemon utterly refused to get along with them. She would not train and only listened to him when Ash told the group it was time to eat. Despite Ash's attempts to be friendly, she offered only cold glares and the occasional growl for her trainer. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't disappointed that Eevee was so slow to trust him, but at least she didn't attack him outright the second he released her from her Luxury Ball. That was a good thing.

Eevee did, however, start to walk outside with him and Pikachu. Ash figured the fresh air might do her some good and let her ease up around them. She seemed to like walking, though any offer Ash made to carry her when she got tired was blatantly refused. While it was clear that the fresh air definitely helped her relax, she did not let up on her passive-aggressive attitude towards him and his team.

She wouldn't battle, though. Ash had no intention of forcing her into a fight, but all she did when they got into a Pokemon battle was sit by his feet and stare in boredom. No matter if they won or lost, all she did was _stare_. There were no cheers of excitement when they won or growls of displeasure if one of Ash's Pokemon were defeated. Eevee just looked void of emotion.

It worried him. Ash knew that she'd been abused, but he had to wonder exactly what had happened to make her the way she was. He had gotten her checked out in Saffron City's Pokemon Center, but all Nurse Joy could tell him was that she was a bit underweight and hated needles with a passion. Hopefully she would come around with time.

Ash paused on his way to take a look at the sky and found that it was just around midday. It was getting hot outside as well. Spring was passing quickly—it would be Summer in just over a month. He'd been traveling for almost two months now. Ash wondered how Gary and Leaf were doing. He hadn't seen either of them since the first few days of his journey. Not to mention Paul. Ash had not encountered the boy after Mt. Moon. He was sure that wherever they were, the three of them were probably training hard.

He looked back down the path to Vermillion and blinked as a figure came into view. The person happened to look his way and blinked back.

Speak of the devil.

"Holy shit, it's Ashy-boy!" Gary exclaimed. He had a Poke Ball in his hand and a large Wartortle was walking beside him. Ash recognized the turtle as Gary's starter and grinned. It looked strong.

"Nice to see you, too," Ash replied dryly. "Did you just catch something?"

"Yeah, a Meowth. Freakin' cat tried to snatch my lunch, but Wartortle taught it some manners," Gary snickered. The Poke Ball in his hand shrank and locked up. Ash realized it was due to Gary having a full party of six on his hands.

Gary took a look at Pikachu on Ash's shoulder and smirked. "So, the little troublemaker from gramp's lab evolved, eh?"

"That's right," Ash scratched Pikachu under the chin as the mouse snickered. "He beat down Misty's Starmie a couple weeks ago."

"Did he? Not bad," Gary whistled. "It took Wartortle to defeat that. My Pidgeotto beat her Staryu easily enough, but that Starmie's Hydro Pump was crazy. So what do you have on you right now?"

Ash shrugged. "Aside from Pikachu here, I've got Charmeleon, Sandile, and Eevee."

His rival's eyes bulged. "Where did you get an Eevee?! I've been asking gramps to set me up with one of those forever!"

"She's actually a rescue," Ash told him. "Officer Jenny in Cerulean got her from a Pokemon mill of some kind. She won't listen to a word I say, but she's not attacking me anymore."

Gary's wide eyes cleared and he grimaced. "Shit. Sorry to hear that. She healthy?"

"She's underweight, but it's not too bad," he admitted. "I got her transferred into a Luxury Ball to help her feel more comfortable. I just have to be patient with her."

"Good luck with that. I'd comment on the Sandile, but I think I'd rather see that in battle," Gary smirked. "But I'll return the favor first, seeing as you don't know what I've got on me. My team now is Wartortle, Pidgeotto, Nidorina, Geodude, Abra, and Machop. I've got four more back at gramp's place, plus the cat."

Ash whistled. "Have you just been catching everything you come across?"

"Hey, you never know when you might need something with a certain set of skills," his rival shrugged. "Back home I've got a Raticate, Bellsprout, Growlithe, and Krabby. I rotate a lot of my Pokemon, but Wartortle is a constant on the team. He's my strongest without a doubt."

Wartortle crossed his arms and lifted his chin proudly. Ash grinned at the water-type. He _looked_ strong, that was for certain.

"So, I seem to remember you wanting a fight?" Ash mentioned casually. Pikachu's cheeks sparked on his shoulder and he grinned with eager delight.

Gary grinned right back. "Duh. I haven't gotten to battle you yet. Of course I wanna beat you. So how do you wanna do this?"

Ash thought about it. "Two-on-two? I'd like to have at least one Pokemon on my team that can carry us to Vermillion."

"Psh, it's only like an hour away. You're almost there," his rival told him.

He blinked in surprise. "You've already been there?"

"That's why I'm back here. I'm training," Gary suddenly scowled. "I challenged Surge, but he's got a kickass Raichu. The monster curbstomped me. It's a four-on-four battle and his first three aren't too bad, but then he sends in Raichu and it just destroys whatever is left."

Ash felt a little worried about that. He only had three Pokemon that could fight on his team since Eevee wouldn't give him the time of day. If Surge was fighting with four Pokemon, he might not even make it to Raichu. Gary had lost and he had way more options than Ash did. Even if he spread his training among many Pokemon, there was no way his team was weak.

Maybe he should train for a little longer…

Gary shook his head and the grin returned. "Anyways, enough about that electric badass. I want a battle with you. Let's do a three-on-three. If you get your ass handed to you, I'll babysit you back to Vermillion."

Ash scowled. "Don't kid yourself. Fine, we'll take you on."

"That's what I want to hear!"

Gary and Ash backed away from each other several paces and then faced off. Pikachu leapt to the ground and Ash nodded to him—he wanted to go first.

"Alright, if the mouse is going to play…" Gary snatched a Poke Ball from his belt and tapped the release.

A Machop appeared in front of him. The fighting-type cracked its knuckles and grinned at the sight of Pikachu, who snickered back. Ash smirked. They were both ready to have a blast.

"Your move, Ashy-boy," goaded the other boy.

"Remember that you asked for it," he replied. "Unbalance it. Quick Attack."

Pikachu lunged at Machop with a blur of speed, zig zagging to keep the fighting-type guessing. Gary smirked and retaliated. "Low Sweep. Knock it back."

Machop watched Pikachu's movements and waited until he was close enough to strike. The moment Pikachu made to actually hit Machop, the fighting-type brought its leg back with surprisingly fast reflexes and delivered a powerful kick into its opponent's flank.

The attack repelled Pikachu away several meters. He hit the ground hard and skidded a ways, but recovered quickly and watched as Machop sneered at him. But Pikachu merely grinned right back. Shots had been fired, but they would be quickly returned.

"Focus Up!" Gary commanded.

"Quick Stun!" Ash countered.

Machop tensed and flexed rapidly growing muscles in what Ash assumed was a combination of Focus Energy and Bulk Up judging from the name of the technique. Pikachu darted at it with Quick Attack, intending to immobilize Machop before it could increase its power.

Quick Stun was simply Quick Attack with Nuzzle added to it. The whole purpose wasn't so much to damage as it was to deliver a fast-acting paralysis that most Pokemon wouldn't be fast enough to avoid. Machop hadn't knocked Pikachu back too much, so it was only a second before the mouse tackled his opponent and delivered the paralysis-inducing Nuzzle.

Machop's eyes widened when it realized what had happened to it and gritted its teeth. Ash had caught it right in the middle of boosting its power and that had clearly left an effect going by the uncomfortable twitching of Machop's muscles.

Gary realized it as well and snapped. "Revenge!"

"Dodge," he ordered. "Back off and use Thunderbolt."

Machop made to grab Pikachu, but it was slowed by the paralysis and had no hope of catching the quick electric-type. Pikachu retreated a few meters and then unleashed a huge discharge of electricity. The blast hit Machop head on and the fighting-type cried out in pain.

"Don't freeze up!" Gary shouted. "Get in there! Revenge!"

"Keep it at a distance and blast it," Ash told Pikachu. "If it gets close, Quick Attack to avoid whatever comes."

Machop tried to follow Gary's commands and get in close, but Pikachu was having none of it. With the fighting-type paralyzed and weakened from the first Thunderbolt, Pikachu started his usual pranking—darting around and zapping Machop with casual shocks. The behavior infuriated Machop, but its debilitated status meant it had no chance of getting in a counterattack.

Ash let Pikachu have his fun for a minute or two before deciding enough was enough. "Alright Pikachu, that's good. Finish it off."

The mouse was sniggering with glee, but he took his trainer's words to heart. Machop was panting and furious, greatly weakened from the electrical assault. Gary looked just as angry by how easily Pikachu was getting the better of his Pokemon, but he could do nothing.

Pikachu stopped to deliver a Thunderbolt that held none of his usual lighthearted pranking. The bolt slammed into Machop and knocked the fighting-type out before it hit the ground.

Gary recalled Machop and scowled as Pikachu snickered in his victory. "That mouse of yours is just as annoying as I heard."

"He's a prankster, that's for sure," Ash said wryly. Pikachu giggled again and retreated to stand by his feet again. Ash knelt to scratch his ears, then pulled out his second Poke Ball.

He sent out Sobek for the next round. The croc locked his eyes on Gary and hissed aggressively, challenging Ash's rival. Gary looked unimpressed by the display and snapped. "Wartortle, you're up."

The large turtle casually moved forward and grinned at Sobek. The Sandile growled in displeasure at the sight of the water-type, but didn't back down. Ash knew this wouldn't be easy, but he did have a strategy for opponents like this.

"Ant Pit!"

Sobek was underground in a flash, getting away from whatever attack Wartortle could throw at him. The turtle looked around his feet warily, but didn't realize he was being trapped until his feet began to sink into Sand Tomb. However, Wartortle didn't panic like the countless others Sobek had trapped like this and simply waited patiently.

Wartortle was far too at ease in his present situation for Ash's liking. He continued his chain of command quickly. "Thunder Fang!"

Sobek erupted from the sand pit and snapped his jaws into Wartortle's shell, electricity surging from the bite. Wartortle growled angrily at his attacker, but did not react until Gary gave his commands.

"Get it off of you with Rapid Spin," Gary ordered. "Balance yourself and then Water Pulse."

The turtle suddenly retreated back into his shell and began to spin. Rapid Spin tore it out of Sobek's jaws and Ash saw a few of the croc's teeth get pulled out forcibly from his jaws. Sobek snarled, snapping at Wartortle, but his opponent had spun into the air and escaped.

Wartortle popped out of his shell and created a sphere of water between his claws before launching it right at Sobek in the center of the sand pit. The croc was still snapping around and managed to destroy the Water Pulse with an angry bite.

Gary wasn't perturbed. He seemed far more comfortable fighting with Wartortle—that brought Ash to believe that Machop had been a recent capture of his. Wartortle was Gary's trump card.

"Aqua Tail. Wrap this up."

Ash watched as Wartortle's tail became enveloped in a layer of water. The turtle began to spin head over heels rapidly, coming down towards Sobek. He narrowed his eyes. "Get it with Thunder Fang when it comes down."

Sobek glared at Wartortle's incoming figures and opened his jaws wide, electricity crackling along the fangs. Ash winced when he saw blood dripping from the Sandile's mouth—a repercussion of getting his teeth knocked out by Wartortle's Rapid Spin. But the croc was still plenty angry and aggressive enough to keep fighting.

He snapped at Wartortle as the turtle got within a few feet, but underestimated the distance and fell short of his target. Aqua Tail slammed into Sobek's skull and Ash watched his partner's eyes briefly widen in surprise and pain before he was knocked out.

Ash frowned. He couldn't remember Sobek ever being defeated so quickly before—he'd lost only a few times as it was. Wartortle had defeated the ground-type more cleanly than any other adversary before him. Ash pinned it on Sobek having not evolved yet. He was just reaching the limits of what a Sandile could do.

He recalled Sobek and Gary recalled Wartortle. Ash reached for his last Poke Ball and tapped the release button. Pyro materialized and spat a small fireball before leering at Gary. Ash's rival grinned and tossed out his own Poke Ball, unleashing a Nidorina.

Ash eyed the small blue creature speculatively. Nidorina were from the female variants of the Nidoran family, a parallel to the male Nidorino. They were more docile than the aggressive males and lacked a horn, but still had venomous barbs, a fierce bite, and a sturdy body. Ash had never fought one before, but given that she was a poison type he decided that keeping his distance was a smart plan.

"Ember," Ash began slowly. "Test her reflexes. Avoid hitting her physically. She can poison you."

Pyro swished his tail to acknowledge him and spat a few small flames in Nidorina's direction. She dodged by jumping to the side and running as Pyro strafed after her with Ember. Ash watched Nidorina carefully—she wasn't too fast, but he could tell that Gary had worked with her more than Machop. She was confident in her movements and just as calm as Wartortle. Gary also hadn't commanded her yet. He was analyzing Pyro just as much as Ash was analyzing Nidorina.

He judged her to be a substantial threat and changed tactics. "Smokescreen, then Dragon Dance."

His starter ended his barrage of flames and instead exhaled a large cloud of oily black smoke. Ash lost sight of him, but that was the idea—Pyro still took over ten seconds to charge up one Dragon Dance. Doing it outright was impossible without the opponent attacking, but by concealing his position, Pyro could gain the precious seconds he needed to boost himself.

Gary's eyes narrowed. "Poison Sting into the smoke. Find it."

Nidorina spat several toxic needles into the smokescreen in various directions. Ash didn't hear Pyro react to any of them, so he assumed that the Charmeleon either hadn't been hit or was ignoring the pain of Poison Sting to keep Dragon Dance going.

The fifteen seconds Pyro needed came through and Ash immediately went into action. "Flamethrower. Clear the smoke away."

At his command, a stream of flames tore through the smoke and blew it aside, forcing Nidorina to scramble away. Pyro emerged relatively unscathed, though Ash could see a few of the stings had dug into his scales. The Charmeleon looked more angry than anything, but Ash decided he'd rather end the battle quickly—poison was debilitating and he had no idea how potent Nidorina's venom could be. It would be best to knock her out as fast as he could before the poison exhausted his starter.

Pyro spotted Nidorina and launched another Flamethrower, but she ducked under it and avoided the flames again. Flamethrower was still rather inaccurate at a distance. It served more as a deterrent than anything for now, but Ash had other ways of making it useful.

"Rush in and Flamethrower at close range," he commanded.

"Keep up Poison Sting," Gary countered. "Aim for its feet."

Pyro lunged at Nidorina, though he had to make his way around her Poison Sting when she tried to keep him at bay. Ash was patient—Pyro didn't need to get right up on Nidorina, just close enough to launch Flamethrower accurately. Once he was just a few meters away, the Charmeleon began to breathe streams of fire at his opponent.

Nidorina shied away from the flames, but her trainer wasn't about to let Pyro get away with the damage he'd done. "Tackle it! Knock that lizard back."

Ash was surprised when Nidorina literally ran right through Pyro's flames and smashed the full weight of her body into his stomach. Pyro was actually lifted off his feet and hit the ground hard, a little stunned from the blow. Nidorina was wincing from the pain of running into fire, but she shook her body and recovered quickly.

Pyro got himself back on his feet and growled angrily. Gary moved to act on his temporary advantage. "Poison Fang!"

"Dodge!" Ash said quickly. "Slash at her shoulder."

Nidorina charged again and snapped at Pyro with teeth that dripped venom. Pyro sidestepped her with his increased speed and delivered a ferocious strike to the poison-type with his sharp claws. The blow unbalanced Nidorina and she crashed headfirst into the ground.

Gary cursed and snapped. "Get up! Use Double Kick!"

Ash frowned. "Get ready to intercept."

Pyro stood his ground as Nidorina ran at him again. At the last second before she would have rammed into him, Nidorina dug her front feet in, spun around and kicked out with her back legs. Pyro's claws came up and caught her kicks, effectively immobilizing her.

Nidorina started to wriggle in an attempt to escape, but Ash wasn't about to let his opportunity go to waste. "Pin her down with Metal Claw!"

Pyro let go of her leg for just a split second and dug silver steel claws into the poison-type at the back of her head, pushing her into the ground. The steel-type move effectively disarmed Nidorina's venomous barbs. Gary was shouting orders, but Nidorina was trapped and Ash was ready to end this fight. "Flamethrower. Don't let up."

His starter blasted Nidorina at point-blank range with Flamethrower, dousing her in fire. Nidorina screeched and desperately tried to escape, but Pyro had her pinned and he wasn't letting go. Gary swore a few seconds later and recalled her, seeing that there was no chance for his Pokemon to win.

Pyro raised his head and spat a fireball in his victory. Ash smiled at the proud fire-type and recalled his starter. He wasn't sure if Pyro had been poisoned or not, but suspended animation would keep him from suffering if he had been intoxicated.

"As much as I hate to say it, you got me there," Gary grumbled. He shrugged through. "I'll hand it to you Ashy-boy, you haven't been wasting your time. That was the first time Nidorina lost a one-on-one."

"You're pretty good, too," Ash returned the compliment. Gary had definitely been one of the toughest opponents he'd faced thus far. "No one's ever beaten Sobek that fast before."

The other boy grinned. "Fair enough. Well, I said I'd show ya to Vermillion. Machop and Nidorina need some healing up anyways. C'mon."

* * *

Vermillion City was wonderful, Ash reflected. The port town was warm and sunny with a perfect view of the ocean. He and Gary had gotten lunch in the Pokemon Center while their teams were healed. Once they finished the decent cafeteria food, they ended up sitting with a group of trainers that were discussing the going-ons around Vermillion. Keeping track of the latest news was important, after all.

One particular newsflash had Ash interested.

"I'm telling you, it beat all three of my Pokemon!" A young girl protested. "I had no trouble beating any of the other ones I caught on my fishing rod, but then that thing jumped out and steamrolled my whole team!"

A couple of other trainers scoffed, but Ash and Gary were both interested in the news. Ash's rival put a question to her. "What were you fighting it with?"

"Goldeen, Mankey, and Voltorb," she said glumly.

Ash frowned. There weren't a whole lot of powerful water-types around Vermillion. Pokemon that had the _potential_ to be strong, yes, but a Pokemon that could beat an entire team down all by its lonesome? That was a Pokemon worth looking into.

"Where was this?" Ash asked her.

The girl stared at him. "Why do you ask?"

"It sounds like a strong Pokemon. I want to catch it."

She gaped. "It'll beat you for sure! How many badges do you have?"

Ash shrugged. "Two."

"Then you've got no more chance than me," the girl said. "I've got two badges and you heard what it did to my Pokemon!"

"I'd still like to have a go at it," Ash smirked. "If anything, it'll be a good fight."

She looked dubious, but sighed. "Fine. I'll show you where I saw it. Just beat it up for me."

* * *

After recovering their Pokemon from Nurse Joy, Ash and Gary followed the girl (whose name turned out to be Jess) to a fishing spot on a currently uninhabited dock. She had brought her fishing rod with her and pointed to a spot just a few meters away from the concrete platform. "That's where I caught it. I'll see if it's still around. If it is…"

"If it's still here, it's mine," Ash declared. He didn't care if Gary had come along, but his rival was just here to watch. Gary had plenty of Pokemon—Ash still needed to build his team. This was a good opportunity. He didn't have a water-type yet and as far as he was concerned, it sounded like this one had potential.

They watched Jess cast her line into the water. She looked at Ash and eyed the Pikachu on his shoulder with doubt. "Can your mouse really beat this thing?"

"Probably," Ash admitted. Pikachu snickered, but his trainer frowned. "Though I wish you could tell us what it was."

"I didn't get a good look at it," she muttered. "It kept diving in and out of the water. I sent my Goldeen after it, but she got smacked right out in no time flat."

Gary smirked. "Well, at least you'll be in for a surprise. Maybe it's the world's strongest Magikarp."

Jess glared at him indignantly. "Excuse me, no Magikarp can beat my team!"

Her anger almost made her miss the rough jerk on the fishing line. Jess spun back around and pulled hard, wincing at the strength on the other end. "Geez, it's strong!"

"Pikachu, get ready," Ash ordered. Pikachu leapt down from his shoulder and dropped to all fours, glaring at the roiling water.

Suddenly there was an explosion of water like a geyser and whatever was on the end of the line burst out. Ash glimpsed blue skin and a flash of white, then a jet of water was fired at Pikachu. The mouse lunged sideways and dodged the Water Gun, giving Ash a chance to retaliate.

"Thunder Shock!" He shouted. Ash wanted an accurate shot first to figure out what this thing was. Thunderbolt held more power, but Pikachu wasn't as good at aiming it yet.

Pikachu fired the bolt of electricity and tagged whatever had burst from the water. Ash heard a grunt, then it fell back into the sea. Jess tugged on the rod to get it back out, but it leapt onto the dock on its own, plenty ready to keep fighting. Apparently, it deemed Pikachu strong enough to face him head-on.

Ash recognized the Pokemon instantly by the spiral pattern on its stomach—Poliwhirl. They were the secondary stage of the Poliwag line and had the potential to evolve into either the mighty Poliwrath or the frivolous Politoed. Ash hadn't thought about catching one before, but the strength this one had displayed—not to mention how quickly it recovered from Thunder Shock—had him wanting it.

Poliwhirl glared at Pikachu and launched a stream of bubbles. Ash recognized it as a Bubble Beam and snapped. "Thunderbolt! Blow them away and then use Quick Stun."

Pikachu let loose a powerful surge of lightning to destroy the Bubble Beam. A second later he darted at Poliwhirl and just missed it—the water-type had sidestepped with surprisingly fast reflexes and now had its fist clenched. The limb glowed, then slammed into Pikachu with blistering force.

Ash's eyes widened. He recognized the Mega Punch from his battle against Brock's Geodude. The fact that Poliwhirl knew it meant that it had trained hard. That made up his mind for good.

He was catching this Poliwhirl.

Pikachu was stunned temporarily from the Mega Punch, but recovered fast enough to avoid the second one that Poliwhirl attempted to smash into his skull. The mouse leapt back and glared at his opponent, who seemed to be preparing another round of Bubble Beam.

"Quick Stun!" Ash shouted.

It was a good thing Poliwhirl had tried to hit Pikachu with a second Mega Punch—now Pikachu wasn't too far away and was able to crash into Poliwhirl before it knew what was happening. The shock of electricity had it grunting from the pain and it shuddered, unable to fire Bubble Beam again. Ash had no intention of letting it get another hit in.

"Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu blasted Poliwhirl ruthlessly, causing the water-type's body to spasm and recoil from the countless volts surging into its body. Ash expected Poliwhirl to fall after that, but he was amazed when it refused to go down. Sheer determination kept it on its feet and he didn't have the heart to deny it a proper end to the battle.

"Volt Tackle."

Poliwhirl was sent flying by the ferocious impact of Pikachu's electrified body. It sailed through the air for a solid three seconds before hitting the ground harshly. Ash saw its body sparking and knew that it was unable to move. He primed a Poke Ball and hurled it at the water-type.

The three trainers and Pikachu watched with baited breath as the ball wriggled and shook violently. Even after being crushed by an electric-type, Ash couldn't believe how much Poliwhirl utterly refused to surrender. It tried to break free for nearly twenty seconds before finally settling down and allowing the capture device to click close.

He grinned widely. "Got you."

Jess was gaping. "Are you serious?!"

"Not bad, Ashy-boy," Gary whistled. "It's got some power to it for sure. Not as strong as Wartortle, but definitely not a weakling. I didn't expect it to know Mega Punch."

Ash picked up the Poke Ball and smiled. "Me neither, but I can't wait to find out what else it knows. Great work, Pikachu! You've earned your ketchup."

He still had no idea how the electric-type could eat so much ketchup in a single sitting, but to each their own. Pikachu grinned with delight and chirped excitedly before running back over to Ash, returning to his shoulder. Ash pulled an Oran Berry out of his pocket and offered it to the mouse, allowing him to recover his energy a little.

Jess still seemed unable to wrap her head around the fact that Ash had captured Poliwhirl with just Pikachu. She shook her head. "I can't believe you caught it. Thank you, I guess. I feel better knowing what it was that beat my team."

"Thanks for telling me about it," Ash replied. "I had no idea what water-type I was going to end up catching. This one was a great find. I better get it to the Pokemon Center, though. I can't imagine Poliwhirl feels too good after being on the end of Pikachu's Volt Tackle."

She smiled back. "You're welcome. But really, I can't believe how strong your Pikachu is! Poliwhirl beat even my Voltorb, but that was mostly because it isn't very fast yet."

"That little mouse of yours is going to be a beast when it evolves," Gary was grinning widely at the idea. "If it's even close to the strength of Surge's Raichu, I'd hate to be on the receiving end of those electric attacks."

Ash smirked. "Don't jinx yourself. Anyways, I gotta go. You coming, Gary?"

"Nah," he admitted. "I'm gonna head back onto Route Six and work on Machop."

"Okay. See you," Ash nodded to his rival and then left the port area, intent on healing up the newest addition to his team.

* * *

Ash brought his team outside to the nearest training field once Poliwhirl was healed up. They all looked at him eagerly (with the exception of Eevee) and waited for him to make the announcement.

"We've got a new teammate," Ash told them with a smile. "It's a Poliwhirl. It's pretty strong—it gave Pikachu the run-around before we paralyzed it."

Pyro and Sobek seemed impressed. Pikachu grinned, like he was remembering the battle. The mouse chittered and electricity sparked on his cheek pouches.

As usual, Eevee didn't seem inclined to care in the slightest.

Ash held the Poke Ball up and prepared to tap the release. "Remember to make a good impression, okay?"

With his team's approval, Ash set Poliwhirl loose. The water-type blinked when it found itself surrounded by four other Pokemon and then turned to stare at Ash. He smiled, doing his best to look friendly.

"Hey there, Poliwhirl. Feeling better?" When the water-type nodded, he continued talking. "My name is Ash. I'm the one who captured you. This is the rest of my team—Pyro, Pikachu, Sobek, and Eevee."

He gestured to each of his Pokemon in turn and watched as they greeted their newest companion. Well, all of them except for Eevee, who just stared at Poliwhirl like the water-type didn't even exist. That seemed to make Poliwhirl a little uncomfortable, so Ash hurried on.

"I'm going to become the strongest Pokemon Master in the world," he declared. "So I'm traveling and training my team to be more powerful than any other. You seem pretty strong. Think you have what it takes to be the best?"

Poliwhirl's eyes glinted and it nodded eagerly. Ash grinned. He liked Poliwhirl's attitude. The water-type wasn't complicated—it respected power and sought to become as powerful as it could possibly be. Ash intended to help it reach that goal. He would turn Poliwhirl into one of the greatest water-types in the world.

Ash brought out the Pokedex and held it up to Poliwhirl. "This is going to tell me a little bit about you, okay? Just stay there."

Poliwhirl nodded again, so Ash tapped the scan feature on the Pokedex. It recognized Poliwhirl and quickly brought up its information.

_Poliwhirl, the Tadpole Pokemon. It can live in or out of water. When out of water, it sweats constantly to keep its skin damp. Because of this, Poliwhirl can slip out of an enemy's grip easily in battle._

_This Poliwhirl is male and knows the moves: Water Gun, Hypnosis, Bubble Beam, Mega Punch, Wake-Up Slap, and Mud Shot. Its ability is Water Absorb, which heals Poliwhirl whenever a water-type attack comes into contact with it._

Just as he thought, Poliwhirl knew some great moves. He had obviously trained hard, and Ash was pretty sure he was as powerful as Sobek at the moment. Pikachu had defeated him with a little difficulty, but it hadn't been a close fight like the one Ash had against Gary. He suspected that given a week or two or solid training, Poliwhirl would easily climb in the ranks.

"I think we're going to get along just fine," Ash grinned at Poliwhirl. "So, do you want a nickname?"

Poliwhirl didn't hesitate to nod and that surprised him a little. Most Pokemon at least thought about it, but Ash found that Poliwhirl was very quick in his decisions. He paused to think about possible names for a few minutes, though eventually he decided on what he hoped was a good one.

"How about Douse?" Ash suggested. He was happy to see Poliwhirl think about it for a few seconds before the water-type nodded, solidifying the idea. "Douse it is. Welcome to the team."

Douse nodded and turned to the other Pokemon, grunting a greeting. Pyro and Sobek nodded back, Pikachu snickered, and Eevee steadfastly ignored it. Ash inwardly sighed. There would be any change in her attitude anytime soon.

"Anyways, it's just about late afternoon," Ash told them as he looked up at the sky and noted that the sun would only give them a few more hours of daylight. "So I want to get in some good training now. We're going to challenge Lt. Surge tomorrow—the Gym Leader. He uses electric-types and from what I heard, the biggest threat is going to be his Raichu."

Pikachu grinned widely at the mention of his evolved form. Ash suspected he just wanted to have a glimpse of what he would look like when he actually did evolve—though where he would find a Thunder Stone, Ash hadn't the foggiest idea. Regardless, the rest of his team (with the exception of Eevee) looked pumped up, so Ash grinned and clenched his fist.

"Alright, let's get to training! Pyro, I want you working with Douse. Figure out where he is and get him ready for our training sessions. Pikachu, you and Sobek get to sparring. I want you to work on evasion—Sobek, try to catch him. Surge's electric-types will be just as fast- faster, maybe. You've got to be able to catch them from underground. I'll alternate between you guys to check on your progress. Sound good?"

His team cheered and Ash nodded. "Then spread out and get started."

* * *

A few hours later and Ash was both nervous and excited. The nervousness was a result of watching countless trainers run to the Pokemon Center after getting destroyed by Lt. Surge. The Gym Leader was pulling out all the stops and apparently he hadn't given out a badge in four weeks. Ash was afraid that he hadn't trained hard enough to win, but his confidence was boosted by the highlight of the night.

He was excited because their training had been quite productive—Pyro's Flamethrower was looking better and Ash had gotten a good idea of how Douse fought. The Poliwhirl was in a great place development-wise. Ash thought about using the Scald TM the Misty had given him on Douse, but he decided against it—for now. Once he was sure that Douse had mastered all of the current moves he knew, then he would get Scald.

Aside from that, Pikachu was getting better at aiming Thunderbolt. Rather than only being able to blast whatever happened to be in front of him, he was starting to get the hang of actually picking out a target from a distance. There were still some accuracy problems, but Ash thought that the mouse would have it down within a couple of weeks.

Sobek had made the most progress. His aggression and agitation were rising substantially as the training went on. He was close— _so close_ —to evolving. It was at the point that Ash decided to pull out all the stops and train for longer than normal. He wanted Sobek to fight the others and maybe the adrenaline rush would be enough to trigger the evolution that could save him in the battle against Surge.

Pikachu had been worn down by his earlier sparring with the croc and was currently eating beside the group's most disagreeable member. Eevee was watching with Ash and Pikachu while she ate, though she avoided all contact with them and the others and simply stared with boredom when she wasn't taking a bite of Pokemon food.

Sobek, Pyro, and Douse were fighting in a three-way. Ash had pit them against each other in the hope that more competition would increase the odds of the Sandile evolving tonight.

"That's it, Sobek!" Ash encouraged the croc as he pulled off a Thunder Fang on Douse. Sobek gnashed his teeth into the Poliwhirl, but Douse smacked him off with a Wake-Up Slap. The Sandile recoiled with a hiss from the super-effective move and dug underground. Pyro suddenly lunged at Douse in a Dragon Rush and met a Mega Punch head-on. The pair heaved against each other for a few seconds before Pyro's greater strength forced his opponent back.

Douse bounced off the ground and landed upright again, then fired a Bubble Beam at the fire type. Pyro's claws glowed and he slashed the attack apart, though a few of the bubbles exploded and dealt him some damage. The Charmeleon grinned at his success, but roared when Sobek exploded from the ground and snapped on his arm with a Crunch. Pyro snarled and bit right back with a Fire Fang, making the croc hiss. The two fighting Pokemon growled furiously and refused to let go until they were suddenly blasted apart by a Water Gun from Douse.

Sobek got the worst of it and hit the ground with a furious hiss. He struggled to his feet, breathing more heavily than Pyro because of his lesser stamina. Douse fired another Water Gun at Sobek and the croc snapped a Thunder Fang into it. The shock traveled up the stream of liquid and mildly shocked Douse, but Sobek took more damage from his opponent and nearly collapsed.

Ash bit his lip. This was bordering the limits of what he was willing to do in training. Too much longer and Sobek would faint. He just wasn't as powerful as the evolved Pokemon that he sparred with, but Ash could see that he was ready to evolve. He was so _infuriatingly_ _close_ …

The ground-type steadied himself and growled challengingly at Douse. The Poliwhirl blinked, apparently uncertain if another attack was a good idea. Sobek looked pretty banged up. Douse glanced at Ash and grunted questioningly. Ash bit his lip and looked over the ground-type carefully. The Sandile's eyes still held that familiar fire, no matter how tired he was.

One more go. If Sobek didn't evolve, Ash would stop for the night.

"Last move," Ash ordered finally. "Pyro, back off. Douse, Sobek, don't hold back."

The Charmeleon went back to Ash and stood beside Pikachu and Eevee as Douse cracked his knuckles and gave Sobek a firm look. The Sandile lashed his short tail and hissed as fiercely as he could.

Douse lunged and clenched his fist, preparing a Mega Punch. Sobek awaited him with open jaws, snarling with the aggression his breed was known for. Lightning crackled along his fangs. Ash watched as Douse leaped into the air and brought his fist down on the Sandile just as Sobek reared up to counter with Thunder Fang.

But Sobek aimed too high and took the Mega Punch right in the stomach. The Sandile went flying and hit the ground with a harsh thud that made even Eevee wince. Ash knew that was it, reaching for Sobek's Poke Ball a moment before he heard the croc roar and suddenly the dark of evening fled from a blinding light.

They watched, transfixed, as Sobek's body and tail doubled in length. His back legs grew substantially and allowed him to rear up into a bipedal stance. Sobek's front limbs lengthened into arms with large claws and hands, while his jaws grew even stronger. When the light finally faded, Sobek opened his fanged maw and let out a roar, reveling in his newfound power.

Ash grinned in delight. The Krokorok in front of him was more than he could have hoped for. Sobek stood as tall as Pyro and had all the raw power he so desperately needed to keep up with his evolved team mates. Now he had caught up with them and Sobek knew it.

The croc looked his new body over and hissed with satisfaction. He flexed his claws, making a few experimental swipes in the air. Sobek awkwardly tried to walk, but receded to all fours when he nearly tripped. He growled in annoyance—apparently walking in a bipedal fashion took some practice after spending all his time walking on all fours.

Ash walked over to him, standing a few meters away. Sobek looked up at him as his trainer held his hand out. "C'mon, Sobek. Try and walk over here."

The Krokorok nodded and unsteadily rose to both feet. He took a hesitant step and wobbled for a moment, then got his balance and took another step. Then a third. A few steps later and he had reached Ash, who set his hand at the corner of Sobek's jaw and scratched the sand-colored scales there. Sobek's throat rumbled in a pleased sound. Ash grinned. His friend still liked that spot.

Once Ash and Sobek had made contact, the rest of the team came over to inspect their friend for themselves. Pyro and Sobek grinned at each other with sharp fangs. Their profiles were surprisingly similar now and Ash could tell they were just waiting for a chance to have a go at their team mate. He would be lying if he said he didn't want to see them spar.

Pikachu jumped onto Sobek's head and snickered as the croc snapped at him in annoyance. But there was no true aggression in the motion, which was proven by the ground-type's amused smirk. Douse walked over and made a happy grunt, which Sobek returned with a growl. Eevee simply padded over to get a brief whiff of the ground-type's new scent, then sat back down and resumed her bored stare.

Sobek looked at Ash, who nodded approvingly. "You look amazing, buddy. I think Surge and his electric-types are in for a nasty surprise."

The Krokorok bared his fangs in vicious delight. Ash mirrored it with a wild grin. He wanted to let his newly evolved friend have a battle before Surge so he hand an idea of how to act. Glancing at Pyro, he deemed the Charmeleon to have enough strength for a short battle.

Besides, the two reptiles were eyeing each other aggressively. Ash figured letting them beat the snot out of each other early on would help curb that.

"Pyro, Sobek, care for one last fight?" Ash asked.

The pair of them growled eagerly, getting in their team mate's face and hissing. Ash smirked and backed off with the rest of his Pokemon. He watched the pair of them snarl a moment longer before stating clearly.

"Begin."

* * *

Ash looked up at the Vermillion Gym the next day. He had slept in a bit late because they stayed up longer than normal for training, but Sobek's evolution was more than worth it. Now he felt like he had a fighting chance. Surge's winning streak would be over once he left this place.

He walked into the gym and found that two trainers in military uniforms were guarding the entrance to the battlefield. Ash frowned. "I'm here for a battle."

One of them eyed him with a sneer. "How many badges do you have, little baby?"

"Two," his eyes narrowed.

The other scoffed, but before he could say anything, the doors behind the two trainers burst open and a kid ran out carrying a Rattata that had clearly been annihilated. Ash blinked as the kid ran past him, bawling his eyes out. Both of the guards snickered after the defeated trainer and one of them nodded to Ash. "Sure you want to go through the same punishment that baby went through? Surge doesn't go easy on anyone, even if they are chumps. Trainers with two badges aren't good enough for him."

Ash glared at the trainer. "Why's that? Is Surge too scared of getting wiped out by a new trainer?"

Both of the trainer guards glared right back at him and looked so furious that Ash thought for a moment they might actually attack. But then there was a roaring laugh and a massive figure that positively dwarfed Ash pushed past the doors and leered down at him.

"Those are some fighting words, punk!" Lt. Surge boomed. The man grinned maliciously and Ash saw that a huge Raichu was on his shoulder—the same place where Pikachu was usually on his. Raichu had the same vicious grin that its trainer did, but Ash didn't back down. He glared at the Gym Leader and his ace.

"That's why I came here," Ash declared. "My name is Ash. I want a gym battle."

Surge sneered. "Huh, a baby with fangs. Don't see those too often. Fine, I'll wipe you out. Then I'm going fishing. Raichu has more trouble blasting Gyarados than these weaklings—and they have a type disadvantage!"

Ash didn't even want to imagine Surge fishing for Gyarados—and for _fun_ it seemed—when he was right about to fight him. He did his best to stand up tall, but it was a pathetic effort compared to Surge's gigantic build. Still, the Gym Leader jerked his head and grunted. "Come on, then. Let's get this over with."

They walked into the main room and Ash saw that the battlefield was fairly plain. He supposed that was to be expected. Surge appeared to be one that didn't need extravagance.

A third gym trainer that had clearly judged the last battle smirked at Ash and began his announcements. "This official gym battle will now get underway! Both trainers will use four Pokemon and the battle will end when all of either side's team is unable to battle. Furthermore, there will be no substitutions."

Surge pulled a Poke Ball off his belt and tapped the release, causing a Pikachu to appear on the field. Ash knew exactly what he was going to do. If he wanted a chance against Surge, there was only one choice.

Sobek appeared on the field with an aggressive hiss. He locked his eyes on the Pikachu and bared his fangs, ready to unleash his fury upon the electric-type.

To the ground-type's credit, Surge looked surprised. "Huh. What do you know? This might actually be fun. Alright little baby, you get the first move."

The gym trainer slashed his hand down. "Begin!"

Ash did not hesitate. "Sobek, Crunch!"

Sobek lunged at the Pikachu and snapped at it viciously. The mouse leapt back and skittered away from its attacker as Sobek continued to sink his teeth into it. Pikachu was obviously faster than the Krokorok, but that didn't stop the ground-type.

Surge snorted. "Quick Slam."

Pikachu dodged another bite from Sobek and then suddenly darted forward. It put all the power in its little body to deliver a fierce Slam, strengthened by the increased speed from Quick Attack. The force was enough to push Sobek back a few feet, but he snarled and managed to snap his teeth into Pikachu's tail before it could dart away. The mouse squealed in pain and wriggled in an effort to get away.

"Throw it, Sobek! Use Dig!"

Sobek spun and threw Pikachu harshly across the field, making the electric-type smack into the dirt. While Pikachu was stunned, the ground-type quickly dug into the battlefield and disappeared.

Surge muttered something under his breath. "Agility. Keep it guessing. When it comes out, bash its pretty head in with Iron Tail."

Pikachu recovered and began to blur around the field with such speed that Ash had trouble keeping his eyes on it. As much as he hated to admit it, Surge's Pikachu was faster than his, though it didn't seem to have as much power. That had him worried considering that this electric-type was evidently weaker than the massive Raichu still sitting beside Surge.

It was a few seconds before Sobek erupted from the ground and tried to slash at Pikachu with his claws, but the mouse easily darted around him and then leaped up. Its tail glowed silver and then it flipped, smashing the Iron Tail into Sobek's head. The Krokorok roared, but it was from fury more than pain. Sobek spun around and snapped at Pikachu aggressively, but the mouse managed to escape by a hair's breadth.

Ash grit his teeth. Pikachu was too fast for Sobek to catch outright. The mouse kept blurring around him and dealing small hits, and even though that was a small amount of damage, it was still damage that Sobek would carry on into the next battle when he beat Pikachu. When, not if. Ash refused to believe that the mouse had any chance of defeating Sobek—for one, the Krokorok's pride would not allow him to fall to such an adversary right after evolving.

Surge apparently realized that Pikachu wasn't doing enough damage and decided to up the ante. "Double Edge."

Pikachu put some distance between itself and Sobek before charging the ground-type, who snarled a challenge. Ash really didn't want him to take a Double Edge, but a plan formed in his mind as he considered it. He decided to go for it.

"Take it!" Ash shouted.

Sobek dug his claws into the ground and braced himself just in time for Pikachu to smash recklessly into him. This time the force was enough to knock the wind out of Sobek, but Pikachu suffered as well—the recoil of Double Edge took effect quickly. Ash jumped at the chance. "Assurance!"

The Krokorok spun around and slammed his powerful tail into the electric-type, sending it flying away with a cry of pain. Ash grinned at the obvious success. Assurance grew in power if the opponent had taken damage shortly before the attack was executed. The recoil of Double Edge served that purpose well.

Surge was grinning. "Not bad, kid! Take a hit to return a bigger one, eh? You've got some balls!"

Ash smirked and issued his next command. "Ant Pit!"

Sobek dove underground again and created a huge pit of sand in the middle of the field, right below Pikachu's feet. The electric-type had just pulled itself together after getting hit by Assurance, but quickly found the ground at its feet sucking it down.

"Double Team!" Surge ordered. "Agility. Go for Double Edge when it pops up."

Ash smiled as he watched Pikachu create multiple copies of itself, but the mouse was unable to move properly on the quicksand. Double Team was no good as a defense against Sobek—his sensitive snout would detect the real Pikachu's location quickly, seeing as the copies were only illusions with no real mass. Pikachu's struggled only allowed the croc to home in on it faster.

"Finish it, Sobek," Ash said clearly. "Crunch."

The ground beneath Pikachu exploded as Sobek burst out of the sand and snapped his huge teeth into the electric-type. Pikachu squealed and tried to escape, but Sobek had a strong grip on it this time and shook it ruthlessly for several seconds. When Pikachu stopped resisting, the ground-type hurled it away and watched with satisfaction as his prey hit the field and didn't get up.

One down, three to go.

Surge recalled Pikachu and smirked. "That overgrown lizard of yours has got some good power. Let's see if it can last."

The next Pokemon was a Magneton. All three of the individual Magnemite that made up its body sparked and locked their three eyes onto Sobek, who hissed at the steel-type. He was even more fired up than before and Ash could see a faint crimson in his eyes—Moxie had activated.

Ash watched the croc warily. As a Sandile, Sobek had slipped into Moxie only a few times, but when he did he became much more aggressive than normal in battle. Frequently, Ash recalled him when Moxie activated so that he wouldn't take things too far.

As a Krokorok, Sobek was far more savage and Ash had no idea what to expect from him now that Moxie had activated.

Surge apparently hadn't noticed though, and began to issue his orders. "Metal Sound, then Flash Cannon. Keep your distance."

Magneton sparked and then suddenly blasted the whole field with the horrible sound of shrieking metal. Ash threw his hands over his ears and gnashed his teeth, feeling his spine crawl. On the field, Sobek was roaring furiously and used Dig before Ash could say anything. Even if he hadn't commanded Sobek to do that, at least he was now out of Flash Cannon's line of sight.

"Magnet Bomb," Surge grinned. "Blow the field up!"

Ash watched as Magneton formed several large silver spheres and spun to launch them over the battlefield. A moment later, they all exploded and caused the ground to erupt. He heard Sobek snarl and realized that the croc had been hit, but he didn't even get to speak before Sobek exploded from the ground and snapped at Magneton with a maw of flames.

The Fire Fang made contact as Sobek's jaws clamped onto Magneton. Surge's Pokemon sparked frantically and attempted to escape, but the Krokorok was furious from battle-lust and the adrenaline of Moxie. Sobek generated another surge of flames in his mouth that exploded on Magneton and shook it just as ruthlessly as he had Pikachu.

Magneton actually made a couple of Magnet Bombs to make Sobek let go, but even that wasn't enough to deter the croc. Sobek's mouth blazed with more fire and Ash flinched when he heard a crack. It sounded like Magneton's steel body was beginning to get dangerously weak under the intense heat and Sobek's powerful jaws.

Surge apparently thought the same because he recalled Magneton a second later. He frowned at Sobek and watched as the ground-type's eyes flared from his second adrenaline boost in this battle. The Gym Leader's eyes widened. "Moxie?"

Sobek roared angrily. He wanted to keep fighting and Ash knew there would be no stopping him. Across the field, even Raichu was flicking its tail with unease. Surge sent out his third Pokemon—a Voltorb.

The electric-type didn't even get to spark before Sobek lunged at it, completely disregarding the fact that Ash hadn't even given a command. Ash opened his mouth to protest the croc's actions when Surge barked. "Explosion!"

Ash flung his arms over his face as a flare of heat and light signaled the execution of Explosion, followed by a concussive blast that demolished the already damaged battlefield. He heard Sobek roar, but there was pain in his voice now and then silence. When the intense light faded, Ash looked up and sighed.

Sobek was down from Voltorb's sacrificial attack, but it was just as well. Apparently, he wasn't skilled enough to handle Moxie yet. Ash would remember that—it disturbed him how much Sobek had lost himself in the adrenaline rush of his own Ability. He returned the Krokorok to his Poke Ball and looked at it with a smile. "You did great, buddy. Take a break. You've earned that."

Surge recalled Voltorb and scowled at Ash. "I don't know where you got your hands on that Krokorok, but it obviously isn't ready to use Moxie. Remember that."

His rough words made Ash angry, but he refused to let Surge get to him. Picking out his second Poke Ball, Ash got ready for what was probably going to be the toughest fight thus far.

Pikachu appeared as Surge knelt beside Raichu. The Gym Leader scratched Raichu's ears and jerked his thumb at the smaller electric mouse. "Shock them stupid."

Raichu sniggered eagerly and rushed onto the battlefield. Its cheek pouches sparked with electricity and Ash braced himself—this was the Pokemon that destroyed all others when the rest of Surge's team failed. It had defeated even Gary. He wouldn't fall to the same opponent.

"Quick Attack!" Ash shouted. "Evade whatever it uses."

Pikachu lunged towards Raichu, darting from side to side in order to make himself a more difficult target. Raichu continued to smirk as it awaited Pikachu, seemingly unwilling to move. Then a second before Pikachu would have crashed into it, the larger electric mouse blurred away.

Ash's eyes widened as Raichu suddenly appeared behind Pikachu and leaped onto it, crushing the smaller electric-type with a Body Slam. Pikachu had the breath knocked out of him and could only lay there, stunned, as Raichu brought its foot back and delivered a horrifyingly powerful Mega Kick.

Pikachu skidded across the field harshly, but pulled himself to his feet. He was dazed from the impact and glared at the snickering Raichu. Ash bit his lip. He knew Raichu would be strong, but that was just ridiculous. The electric-type could move with blistering speed and deliver ferociously powerful hits in no time flat. As it was, he was pretty sure Pikachu could only take one more hit from the beast of a mouse before he would be defeated.

"Volt Tackle!" Ash commanded desperately. It wouldn't cause as much damage against Raichu since it was an electric-type move, but the move had more raw power than any of Pikachu's other attacks. It would do the most damage before Raichu defeated its opponent.

Surge grinned widely. "Your mouse can use that too, eh? Good! Let's return the favor, Raichu."

Raichu's grin matched its trainer's. As Pikachu cloaked himself in electricity and began to rush his opponent, Raichu mirrored him. However, Ash realized that Raichu's Volt Tackle was far more concentrated and thus held a lot more power. His heart sank when he realized there could be only one outcome.

The two Volt Tackles collided, but Raichu forced Pikachu back not a second after the impact was made. Pikachu was sent flying and crashed into the ground with enough force to make a crater below his body. Ash recalled him into his Poke Ball—there was no doubt that Pikachu was unconscious after taking a hit like that.

Raichu shook itself as the recoil took effect, but it didn't seem tired at all. Surge smirked. "Your baby mouse still has a lot of work to do. That was one of the sloppiest Volt Tackles I've ever seen. Wouldn't you agree, Raichu?"

The huge mouse sniggered and nodded. Ash glared at the electric-type and picked out his third Poke Ball. Douse appeared and cracked his knuckles, fixing his gaze on the massive Raichu on the other side of the field.

Surge sneered. "Wow, a fish? Really? Raichu, get to cooking."

Raichu rubbed its paws together and sparked again. Ash wasn't about to let it get away with whatever electrical horrors it had in mind. "Douse, use Mud Shot."

Douse spat a blast of mud, which Raichu dodged with contemptuous ease. Ash noticed that it wasn't quite as fast as before though, and figured it was because of the recoil from Volt Tackle. He realized that Raichu was a bit of a glass cannon. It could deal out devastating amounts of damage with incredible speed, but receiving even a mild injury would slow it up. There was no way Raichu would go down easily, but if Ash could slow it down, he might have a chance.

"Bubble Beam!" Ash commanded. "Spread it over the field. Don't let it get away."

He watched as the Poliwhirl unleashed a stream of large bubbles across the battlefield, caging Raichu on Surge's side. Raichu blasted them away with a bolt of lightning, but it gave Ash a few seconds to come up with a strategy. "Blast it with Water Gun. Short bursts—if you fire a stream, it can still shock you."

Douse grunted and began to carry out his orders. He fired quick shots of Water Gun, attempting to snipe Raichu before it could launch its own attack. The first couple of shots actually hit the mouse, but it started running again before long and dodged the rest. It seemed annoyed that its fur was wet and began to zig zag as it ran, closing the distance to Douse.

Ash saw Raichu leap into the air to deliver a Body Slam and saw his chance. "Avoid it, then Mega Punch!"

As Raichu came down, Douse sidestepped it the same way he had when he battled Pikachu the day before. Clenching his fist, the Poliwhirl waited for Raichu to hit the ground and then smashed Mega Punch right into the electric-type's face. Raichu yowled and went flying, but did a flip and recovered its balance easily.

"Mud Shot!" Ash followed up quickly. "Water Gun. Keep it at a distance."

Douse struck again with a burst of mud, which only grazed Raichu before it landed on the field and started to run again. His Water Gun bursts missed their mark though, as the mouse slipped into Agility and evaded them.

"C'mon Raichu, quit playing about," Surge yawned. "Fry it."

Ash didn't like the sound of that. "Fire Mud Shot repeatedly!"

As Douse moved to follow his commands, Raichu's cheeks sparked and the air was suddenly charged with ozone. It was the only hint Ash had of what was coming before an intense beam of electricity was fired at Douse. The flash of energy blinded Ash and he was forced to close his eyes as the sound of an explosion rang out.

When he opened his eyes, he found Douse's smoking form lying unconscious on the ground. Ash sighed and recalled him. He had no idea what kind of attack Raichu had used, but he suspected it was probably Charge Beam. He wasn't aware of any other move that was remotely like that.

Surge smirked. "Three down, kid. Fork over number four so I can go get my lunch."

Ash grabbed Pyro's Poke Ball and hit the release, unleashing the Charmeleon upon the already ravaged battlefield. Pyro spat a fireball and glared at Raichu, who glared right back. The mouse was finally looking tired and Ash was pretty sure it wanted to end the fight as soon as possible. Ash intended to do just that—but not in the way Raichu would prefer.

"Ember," he ordered. "Keep moving as you attack. If you stay in one spot, it'll destroy you."

Pyro flicked his tail in acknowledgement and began his assault. He started to run to the right, spitting small flames at Raichu as he went. The mouse began to run in the opposite direction and dodged easily until it got to the halfway point on the field, where it skidded to a stop at its trainer's command.

"Volt Tackle," Surge told his Pokemon. "Wrap this up."

Raichu began to rush forward, cloaked in the same deadly charge that it had defeated Pikachu with. Ash acted on impulse and shouted. "Smokescreen!"

Pyro ceased the shots of fire and suddenly blew out a mass of oily black smoke. It spread quickly, covering his position just seconds before Raichu dove into the dark haze and vanished. Ash tensed, waiting for the sound of an impact. He wasn't sure if Pyro had been quick enough to evade Volt Tackle.

A screech suddenly broke the tense silence and Ash's eyes widened as Raichu was sent flying out of the smoke cloud. Pyro lunged after it, his claws still glowing bright from the impromptu Slash.

"Flamethrower!" Ash commanded.

The Charmeleon acted instantly and spat a fireball at Raichu while it was still airborne. Ash grinned with satisfaction as the attack made contact, damaging the electric mouse further. Across the field, Surge finally started to look a little nervous.

"Thunder!" Surge barked. "Fry that lizard!"

"Dragon Rush!" Ash yelled, desperate to keep up the pressure before Surge's Pokemon could use the ridiculously powerful electric attack. "Don't let it use Thunder!"

Raichu's cheeks sparked as it began to charge up a huge amount of electricity. Pyro was still running at it and propelled himself off the ground. His pupils narrowed to slits and made contact with Raichu's—the mouse froze for a crucial split second under the intimidating appearance of the dragon-type move.

Raichu's foot had just touched the ground when Pyro barreled into it, carrying the electric-type off its feet once again before crushing it into the wall. The Charmeleon backed off quickly and waited for any retaliation with a snarl on his face. Ash didn't move until he saw Raichu lying on the ground. A broad grin broke out on his face as Pyro spat a fireball into the air in victory.

Surge's jaw dropped. "Wha—wait, I lost? To a kid?"

Apparently, the referee was just as stunned because he completely forgot to call the match. Pyro ran over to Ash and bumped his head into the boy's arm, enticing Ash to scratch the fire lizard's warm scales. He was ecstatic—they had beaten Surge! Not even the Gym Leader's monstrous Raichu was able to stop them!

"Good job, buddy!" Ash exclaimed as he scratched Pyro's chin. "You were great."

Pyro made a delighted rumble and waved his tail again. The two of them looked up as Surge walked over with Raichu cradled in one of his huge arms. Ash realized the electric mouse was awake, though it looked pretty tired.

Rather than the scowl Ash expected, Surge was grinning widely. "Looks like you know how to use those fangs of yours, kid! That was the most fun I've had in weeks. Good job."

Raichu snickered tiredly. Ash wasn't sure what to make of that, but apparently Raichu liked fights that were worth its time—even if it lost. He decided he could respect that. He felt the same way about battles.

Surge dug his spare hand into his pocket and pulled out a badge. "This is the Thunder Badge. Not a whole lot of trainers have gotten this one yet. The League told me to get rougher with all the babies since I gotta hand out these damn tickets with the badge."

Ash blinked when Surge pulled a scrap of paper from the same pocket and passed it to him. He frowned. "What's that?"

"A ticket for the St. Anne cruise liner," the Gym Leader told him. "It's a big boat for trainers and rich people. The ship is scheduled to stop here in Vermillion about three months from now in July—that ticket will let you hop on board for a three day trip to Cinnabar Island. I'd take advantage of it, kid. They have tournaments on the boat that give out rare items and Pokemon as prizes."

That got Ash excited. He didn't really need a vacation, but the idea of a tournament on a huge boat sounded like fun to him.

Surge smirked at the boy's enthusiasm. "These tickets are the whole reason I was told by the League to start ripping the babies apart. Apparently only the best trainers are allowed onboard. Personally I don't think real trainers need something like that to get them working hard, but whatever. You got lucky being the first to beat me since I was given the order to let loose—that ticket there is for first class. Every other baby that beats me after this is gonna get some cheap room."

"Thanks!" Ash grinned.

"You earned it, I reckon," Surge shrugged. "Say, how about we grab some grub at the Pokemon Center? Raichu needs a checkup and I reckon your Pokemon do too."

* * *

They were definitely a sight that attracted attention—Ash eating at a table in the Pokemon Center across from Surge, who had gotten three burgers and put each of them down in something like two bites. Most of the trainers watching seemed to be shocked that Surge was begin civil—after all, most of them had been thoroughly steamrolled by the electric-type Gym Leader.

"Ah!" Surge grinned after downing the last of his drink. "Food always hits the spot after a good battle, eh?"

"Definitely," Ash agreed. He was still eating, but he didn't mind talking to Surge. The Gym Leader was surprisingly friendly despite being defeated by Ash. He suspected it was because Surge respected strength, and the boy had proven he was strong enough to stand up for himself.

"Right," the Gym Leader looked at Ash with a smirk. "I'll be frank with you—you've got a lot of potential, kid. Your Krokorok needs a lot of work with Moxie, your Pikachu's Volt Tackle is second-rate and that Poliwhirl is just a minnow, but they've got the makings of something good. I didn't get to see too much of your Charmeleon, so I'll bet it's about the same. Take my advice on this—challenge yourself. Don't go back to swimming with bottom feeders and put those fangs of yours to good use."

Ash nodded. "I know. I caught Poliwhirl yesterday and Krokorok actually just evolved last night. We'll have to practice Moxie on the trainers we meet on the road. I'm not really sure how to help Pikachu with Volt Tackle, though. I had enough trouble teaching it to him."

"You're a new trainer, right?" Surge scratched his chin thoughtfully. "How long you been training?"

"Two months, give or take a week."

"Huh. I'm actually amazed you made any progress with Volt Tackle at all," Surge remarked. "That's not an easy move to teach. Then again, you only just got the rough concept of it down. It's by no means anywhere close to perfected. Your Pikachu uses up too much electricity on it. It's excessive and not concentrated enough. Right now, I'd say it's halfway between a Wild Charge and Volt Tackle. Work on his control whenever you can."

Ash nodded again. He was soaking up whatever information Surge gave him. The man was an expert on electric-types—any advice he offered was priceless in regards to training Pikachu. Ash wanted Pikachu to reach his maximum potential.

"I dunno much about Krokorok or Poliwhirl, or Charmeleon for that matter," the Gym Leader shrugged. "But as far as Pikachu goes, I can help you out a good bit. Try teaching him Electro Ball. It's not overwhelmingly strong, but it'll teach him how to control and concentrate electricity better. He needs work on his speed as well, so here's a simple training regime—teach the baby mouse Agility, then have him run back and forth about a hundred meters for an hour or so. He won't like it, but he'll thank you for it later."

Ash smiled at that. He could imagine the pranks he would receive for putting Pikachu through exercises like that. The mouse did need work on his speed and stamina, though, and Surge's advice sounded legitimate to him. "Thank you. I really appreciate it."

"If you want to show me your appreciation, come back for a rematch after you train all your little baby Pokemon into a real fighting force," Surge grinned fiendishly. "My team needs a good workout and you fit the bill. Plus I want your mouse to fight Raichu once it evolves—that's something I'd really like to see."

That turned his smile into a fierce grin. Surge's battle-lust was infectious. "You're on."

"Good!" The Gym Leader roared in laughter. He stood up and held his hand out. "Well, I gotta get back to the gym. My break is over and I've got more asses to kick. See you kid. Don't get soft."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Ash replied, shaking Surge's hand before the huge man strode off.

* * *

"Ash, I'm so proud of you!" Delia Ketchum practically squealed on the other end of the PokeNav. Ash had just told her about his victory at the Vermillion Gym and she was near ecstatic from the news. He'd kept his promise since Cerulean City to stay in touch with his mother every week or so. That helped to assure her of his safety and kept Ash from ending up on the receiving end of his mother's anger should her knowledge of his wellbeing be neglected.

He smiled back at her through the video phone. "Thanks. I caught a Poliwhirl out here too—his name is Douse. Oh, and Sobek evolved!"

"It sounds like you're doing very well," she said happily. "So where do you think you'll be going next? There are still a few months before the St. Anne arrives in Vermillion. What are your plans?"

Ash frowned slightly. "I'm not really sure. I definitely plan on going to Celadon and defeating Erika—it sounds like she's going to be easy compared to Surge. I might try to drop by Fuchsia as well if I have time. But I need to have a plan to face Sabrina after that. She's…well, I've heard that she's one of the most powerful Gym Leaders in Kanto. Her psychic-types are crazy strong. I'm sure Sobek can probably beat _one_ of her Pokemon, but there's no way he can handle all three by himself."

"Yes, I've heard that as well," Delia murmured. She was quiet for a moment, then her face seemed to clear. "Have you thought about catching a ghost-type? Psychics are very prone to damage from ghost-type attacks."

"Ghost-types aren't exactly common," he replied. "I don't even know where to go looking for one."

"Hmm…Oh! I remember Professor Oak saying that there are ghost-types in Lavender Town!" His mother exclaimed. "That's not too far from Vermillion, either! Maybe you should go there before heading to Celadon. It would give you more time to train it."

Ash thought about it. "Lavender Town, huh? I'll check it out. Thanks, mom."

Delia smiled. "Of course, dear. Good luck, and stay safe!"

"I will. Goodbye," he said before ending the call and leaving the video phone for the next trainer to use.

Ash went to his room in the Pokemon Center. It was too late in the day to leave now and frankly he wanted a break before setting out for his next destination. He also needed to plan out the next stage of training for his Pokemon. He didn't want to just hit the road with no goals in mind for his team.

Surge had given him a good plan for Pikachu, so Ash considered the electric-type's training set for the time being. Pyro needed to perfect Flamethrower and both of his dragon-type moves. Ash still had no idea why they were so ridiculously hard to learn. No matter how hard Pyro tried, he just could not seem to harness the correct type of energy necessary to execute them. He knew dragon-type moves were notoriously difficult to learn, but this was absurd.

Ash wanted to try and teach Pyro Mega Punch. He knew that the Charmeleon line could learn it, and he hoped that Douse could provide a good example for Pyro to learn. He just wanted Pyro to have a little extra variation. In the instance that Slash wouldn't work, Mega Punch would give him the option of brute force.

Sobek was the next order of business. Now that he had evolved, Ash intended to get him TMs as soon as possible, but until then, he wanted to work on Moxie. It had been made blatantly clear in the battle with Surge that Sobek was unable to control his aggression once the ability activated. He needed to learn how to maintain his composure—that would make him a more effective fighter.

As for Douse, Ash was going to use the Scald TM on him soon. He wanted to try and work on Hydro Pump as well. The water-type move was insanely powerful and would probably take them weeks, if not months to master, but Ash had faith that the Poliwhirl could do it. Douse was just as dedicated to training as the rest of his team. If anyone could do it, he could.

Eevee was Eevee. Ash would simply continue to show her kindness and make sure she was healthy. Her aggression was swiftly becoming a thing of the past, though her social skills were still nonexistent. He was patient—Eevee would become more friendly in time. At least, he hoped she would.

Ash sat down on the bed and took out the Poke Balls containing his five friends. One by one, he set them all loose in his room, watching as they all gave him their attention. He smiled at the group.

"You guys were amazing today. I'm really proud of you all. We were the first team to beat Surge in over a month. That Raichu of his destroyed every other trainer that came his way."

Pyro rumbled happily at the praise. Pikachu snickered and Douse bounced cheerily. Eevee's glare was mildly less frosty, but it wasn't quite friendly either. Ash didn't mind. She was getting better—he was sure of that.

Sobek seemed annoyed and Ash moved to reassure him. "Sobek, you fought so hard today. You should be proud. You beat two of Surge's team and forced him to sacrifice a third. We couldn't have won without you."

That seemed to placate the disgruntled Krokorok, because he grinned toothily and nodded. Ash scratched the ground-type's jaw and then looked at all the others. "Tomorrow we'll start traveling towards Lavender Town. We're going to try and add a ghost Pokemon to the team."

The news had mixed results. Pyro and Sobek seemed fine with it. Pikachu looked curious, if the twitching of his ears was anything to go by. Douse looked slightly nervous and Eevee just didn't care.

Ash internally shrugged. "Anyways, that's our next destination. We'll be training hard along the way, so rest up."

His Pokemon nodded and then moved to settle in their various spots around the room. Pikachu curled up on his trainer's stomach when Ash lay down and Pyro stretched out on the floor, resting his burning tail on his fireproof blanket. Sobek mirrored Pyro and Ash smirked a little at how similar they were. Douse sprawled out on his back on the floor, his round body rising up and down as he breathed. Eevee jumped onto the end of the bed and curled up, her back to Ash and the others.

Ash looked over his team one last time before he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been without power for 60+ hours because of that damned arctic storm. I'm exhausted. And cold. And starving.
> 
> Here's the latest team update for the chapter, featuring Gary's team since he's also important.
> 
> Also, for more detailed team updates including a list of moves known by each Pokemon and their abilities, check my profile out on ffnet, which is also darkfire1220.
> 
> Ash Ketchum
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Pyro (Male Charmeleon)
> 
> Pikachu (Male)
> 
> Sobek (Male Krokorok)
> 
> Eevee (Female)
> 
> Douse (Male Poliwhirl)
> 
> /
> 
> Gary Oak
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Wartortle (Male)
> 
> Pidgeotto (Male)
> 
> Nidorina (Female)
> 
> Geodude (Male)
> 
> Abra (Male)
> 
> Machop (Male)
> 
> At Oak's Lab:
> 
> Raticate (Female)
> 
> Bellsprout (Female)
> 
> Growlithe (Male)
> 
> Krabby (Male)
> 
> Meowth (Male)


	6. The Follower

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ash goes looking for a ghost in Lavender Town. He finds one. And Team Rocket, but Cynthia's in a bad mood. So is her Garchomp. 
> 
> Rest in pieces, Team Rocket. Rest in pieces.

_Chapter Six: The Follower_

Route Eleven was a long road, Ash reflected as he set up camp for the night. It was mostly prairie, with large patches of tall grass that he mostly avoided. In that tall grass were Ekans and Raticate, who could be aggressive if startled. Ash knew that there were also Drowzee around, but the psychics didn't actually cause any harm to passing trainers. They fed on dreams, which was harmless unless Drowzee attacked with malicious intent. The only noticeable change for the individual would be a night of dreamless sleep.

There were Spearow flocks as well, but again, they weren't aggressive until they were provoked. That is, unless a Fearow was leading them. The evolved Pokemon were what made Spearow dangerous, what with their highly aggressive temperament and short fuse. They were the real threat, but Ash was confident that he could handle any of the birds.

Over the course of the week he spent traversing the prairies, he fought every trainer that he possibly could and defeated most of the people he encountered. Many were training to defeat Lt. Surge, so he supposed that was the reason why he won the majority of the battles. He only met a couple of trainers that gave him an actual challenge, but did earn a good bit of money in the process, so that was a plus.

Ash pushed his team as hard as he could whenever they stopped for the night. Even Eevee, because the little normal-type spent the entirety of each day walking with Ash and Pikachu. She hadn't warmed up to him much, but she had been watching the rest of the team's training sessions with _slightly_ more interest as of late.

Once camp was ready, Ash set his team loose. There weren't many targets to practice moves on in the prairie, so they just sparred against one another. He waited for each of his Pokemon to adjust themselves upon release from the confines of their Poke Balls before addressing them.

"More sparring tonight," Ash announced. "Douse, keep trying to help Pyro learn Mega Punch. Warm up with that and then practice some close-range fighting, okay?"

Douse nodded and cracked his knuckles. Pyro lashed his tail from side to side, the flame on the tip already burning brighter than normal. Ash smiled at that. Those two got along marvelously. Douse was just easy to befriend and Pyro seemed to like anything that could fight him on equal terms.

"Sobek, you and Pikachu are the other pair," he continued. "I want you two to work on improving speed and endurance. Start running and keep at it until I come over to you, alright?"

Pikachu nodded, but Sobek offered Ash a magnificent stink-eye. The boy smirked. "Don't give me that, Sobek. You need to improve your speed and you know it."

Sobek rolled his eyes and growled with displeasure. The croc _hated_ these exercises. They were straight from Surge's training advice—simply running back and forth over a short distance nonstop until they could run no further. None of the team were particularly fond of the brutal sprints, but Sobek especially hated them with a passion.

Ash glanced at his team and nodded. "Get to work. You have ten minutes to warm up and then we'll be working for at least an hour."

A chorus of voices answered him as the four Pokemon separated into their groups. Ash went back to the camp and sat down, watching them exercise for a few moments before pulling out his PokeNav and looking up their current position. He was only two days from Lavender Town. One more day on the prairie, then another on the wooden bridges that made up the northern section of Route Twelve. Ash had never been that far east before, and he would be lying if he said he wasn't a little excited about it.

There was so much lore and mystery to Lavender Town and the enormous Pokemon Tower that commanded much of its historical significance. What sorts of ghosts would he encounter there? Undoubtedly he'd see Gastly and Haunter, which he felt he could take on easily enough, but what else? Misdreavus? Other, less common ghosts in Kanto? The town was so old, surely a little variety had established itself over the years…

A yip got Ash's attention and he glanced down at Eevee. The normal-type was giving him an annoyed look and jerked her head towards the others. He realized that he'd spent more time than he'd intended on the PokeNav and jumped up.

"Thanks, Eevee. Sorry guys, I'm coming now!"

* * *

"Slash!" Ash commanded.

Pyro ducked underneath a Water Gun from the Seadra they were fighting and lunged while it was still in the air. The water-type had jumped out of the sea to strike, leaving itself open to a counterattack.

Lashing out with sharp claws, the Charmeleon cut right through the tough scales covering Seadra's body. The water-type screeched angrily and tried to spit a Bubble Beam at him, but Pyro slashed through the bubbles and then crushed Seadra with a vicious tackle. The Dragon Rush proved to be too much for their opponent and at last battered it into unconsciousness.

Ash breathed a sigh of relief. That had been one of the tougher foes he'd met on the way to Lavender Town thus far. Seadra's trainer, a fisherman, recalled the seahorse and approached him.

"That was some fight!" Exclaimed the trainer. "It's not everyday someone beats my Seadra, especially a fire-type. Your Charmeleon is something else, kid."

"Thank you," Ash smiled back. "That Seadra really was strong. I thought it was going to beat us a few times there."

"I appreciate the kind words," replied the fisherman. He handed Ash the prize money he owed graciously and then poised a question. "Say, where are you headed to?"

"Lavender Town."

The man arched an eyebrow. "You might think about heading in the opposite direction, kiddo. There've been some creepy stories coming out of that town. Well, creepier than normal."

"Creepy?" Ash replied questioningly.

"Yeah. The town is a historical haunt of ghost-types, but word is lately that they're behaving nastily. I wouldn't risk getting attacked. They're dangerous, those ghosts."

The boy smirked. "Actually, those ghosts are the whole reason I'm going there. I wanted to capture one for my gym battle against Sabrina."

"Sabrina, eh?" the fisherman snorted. "Yeah, I'd say you'll need one to stand a chance against her. I think I'll hit one of the lesser gyms before I risk fighting those beasts of hers. Anyway, good luck with the ghosts kid."

Ash nodded and then went on his way. He was just a few hours away from Lavender Town and none of the warnings he'd heard about the place were going to deter him. Ash was getting a ghost—he'd travelled too far to turn away because of a few scared people.

Pyro nudged his trainer's arm and growled to get his attention. Ash smiled at his starter and scratched the horn on the Charmeleon's head. Pyro made a happy rumble in turn and the pair of them continued walking. Ash readjusted his hat in the face of the midday sun. The only downside of being so close to the sea at this time of year was it was ridiculously hot. Pyro loved it, but Ash was sweating bullets.

Ignoring the heat, he continued on his way.

* * *

Upon arrival at Lavender Town, Ash noticed two things that stood out: first, the locals were downright rude. Not a single one was kind enough to point out the Pokemon Center when he asked and just brushed him off. Ash ended up wandering for a while before he finally found the place, still sweaty and now irritated by the annoying behavior of the town residents.

Second, Lavender Town was unusually chilly. Once he'd walked into the town, the temperature plunged and Ash got the primal sense that he was not supposed to be anywhere near the place.

He was relieved that at least Nurse Joy was still polite despite the rest of the town.

"Welcome to the Pokemon Center!" Joy said kindly. "How may I help you?"

"My Pokemon need a checkup, please," Ash told her, setting his Poke Balls on the counter.

"Of course. I'll call you when your Pokemon are fully healed," she told him.

Ash nodded. "If it's not too much trouble to ask, what's going on in the town? I heard rumors on the way here that the ghost-types are acting strangely."

Joy frowned. "Yes, they have been more aggressive lately. No one seems to know why, but all the ghosts are congregating around Pokemon Tower. They attack anyone that tries to enter the upper levels of the tower and seem driven by some otherworldly force."

"It's that bad?"

"Under the circumstances, the League dispatched one of their agents to deal with the problem. But she hasn't returned yet…" Joy glanced at the phone at her desk. "It's been a day already. I've thought about calling the League again. This town is actually the home of Elite Four Agatha, but she was otherwise occupied when the call came in. Now…"

Ash thought about it for a moment. "Actually, I was thinking of entering the tower to pick up a ghost-type. Is that possible right now?"

Joy fixed him with a glare. "Now listen here. These wild ghost-types aren't anything to scoff at. If the agent the League sent can't handle the problem, you can't—"

"—I don't mean the upper levels of Pokemon Tower. You said the problem was concentrated up high, right?" Ash replied. "I'll stay on the lower floors. And if I find that agent, then I can tell you if she needs help or not."

"Well…" Joy hesitated, pursing her lips. "I can't encourage you to go. But if you really do insist on going, I can't exactly stop you, although I recommend you meet with Mr. Fuji. He runs the Pokemon Day Care here and he used to be a Pokemon Professor as well. Talk to him first."

"I'll do that," he promised. "I'll go talk to him while my Pokemon are being healed."

"Very well. The Day Care is just a short walk from here. Mr. Fuji built it close to the Pokemon Center in case any of the young Pokemon became sick."

Joy gave him directions to the Day Care and Ash took off. He couldn't enter Pokemon Tower yet, but he could at least get some idea as to what was going on.

* * *

A small girl answered his knock at the Day Care. She blinked at Ash and hid behind the door slightly. "Can I help you?"

Ash smiled and tried his best to look friendly. "I was wondering if Mr. Fuji is here?"

"Yeah, he is," she squeaked. "He's my grandpa. Do you know him?"

"No, but I need to talk to him. Please?"

The girl seemed to consider, then nodded. "Wait here a moment."

She closed the door and Ash heard the sound of footsteps running off. He inwardly sighed. Even the kids here behaved very oddly around strangers. Ash was tempted to pin that on the presence of so many ghost Pokemon, but decided against it. There were plenty of ghost-type trainers that didn't behave like this. Agatha, for one. The Elite Four member was fierce and not at all against human contact. Well, from what he had heard of her.

His train of thought ended as the door swung open, revealing an old man with a curious expression upon his face. "Yes? May I help you, young man?"

"You're Mr. Fuji, right?" He asked. At the elder's nod, he went on. "My name's Ash. I'm a trainer. I came here to catch a ghost-type, but Nurse Joy said I should come talk to you first because of all the strange things happening around here."

Fuji gave him a scrutinizing look that made Ash slightly uncomfortable, but he nodded again. "Very well. Come inside, please."

"Thank you."

Ash stepped in and looked around. The Day Care was a small and relatively simple affair. Several wooden stables gave the Pokemon their own space, though some of the stables had two or even three inhabitants. Those were small Pokemon though, so Ash assumed they were juveniles or even babies.

Fuji led him to the back, where there was an office of sorts. It was filled with books and research papers on subjects that Ash probably hadn't even heard of. Their owner _did_ used to be a Pokemon Professor, after all.

"Now then," Fuji sat down in a chair and looked at Ash again. "You said you were here to capture a ghost-type?"

"Yes sir," Ash replied. "I've been thinking about ways to defeat Sabrina. She's still a long way off for me, but I like to plan ahead. I've got a Krokorok right now, but there's no way he could defeat her whole team on his own. I think a ghost-type would be a great addition to my team."

"Hm. What would this ghost-type be to you once it has served its purpose, Ash?"

Ash frowned. "Served its purpose? What do you mean?"

Fuji was eyeing him analytically. "You say you wish to capture a ghost to defeat Sabrina. Is that all it would be to you? Simply a means to an end?"

That made him scowl. "That's not funny."

"It's not meant to be funny. Please, answer my question."

"It would be a member of my team," Ash snapped. "Of course I would battle with it against Sabrina, but I'm not just going to discard it once I win the badge. What kind of trainer does that?"

Fuji smiled mysteriously. "More than either of us would be entirely happy about, unfortunately. Very well, you've convinced me. I apologize for the…interrogation, but good trainers are in short supply these days and I'm unwilling to help out those without the best intentions."

He thought the man had an odd way of finding out such information, but didn't say that. Fuji was probably the only one in Lavender Town that knew what was going on with the ghost-types.

"First of all, I should enlighten you as to the purpose of Pokemon Tower," Fuji stated. "It serves as a resting place for deceased Pokemon. The people of Lavender Town have buried their partners there for centuries. As a result of all the departed spirits resting there, ghost Pokemon were attracted to the sight. Our ghost-type trainers made a pact with them long ago, to protect the tower and the people of Lavender Town. In exchange, the ghosts could come and go as they please, as residents of the town itself.

"In regards to what is happening now, I have only a slight clue. There are ghost-types that have been relatively unaffected by the strange behavior that has inflicted the rest of their kind. They have informed me that there is an unusual energy flux in the highest floor of Pokemon Tower, caused by a massive gathering of spirits. Why this is happening, I have no idea, but it has the ghosts riled up for some reason."

Ash frowned. "Are they harmful, somehow? The spirits?"

"No. Spirits themselves are simply presences, or so I'm told. Ghosts can sense and interact with them, but spirits are not able to actually hurt anyone. No, something else has them on edge and I don't know what. That's what the League Trainer went to find out, but she has yet to return…"

The room was quiet for a moment. Ash suddenly felt a slight breeze on his neck and turned. He screamed a second later at the sight of a skull and a single red eye. He fell flat on his rear and stared with wide eyes at the skull, which turned out to simply be a mask. The owner of said mask made a cackling laugh and watched him with obvious amusement. Aside from the skull mask and large, single red eye, the small ghost was simply a wispy, black body floating in the air.

Fuji chuckled. "Don't be alarmed. This ghost has been unaffected by the odd influx of spirits. He often stays here and keeps some of the younger Pokemon company."

Ash stared at the ghost curiously. "What is he?"

"A Duskull," Fuji told him. "They're considered native to the Hoenn region, but you can find them wherever spirits congregate. They act as guides of sorts for wandering souls seeking the afterlife. It might sound ominous, but they're actually quite friendly."

"Duskull," Ash repeated. He had recovered from his shock and stood back up. The ghost-type slowly floated around his head in a circle, scanning Ash with his eye. He clearly liked what he found, because Duskull used the wispy appendages on either side of his body to pick up Ash's hat and set it upon himself.

Fuji chuckled again. "He likes you."

"I can see that," Ash smiled. Duskull flew to Mr. Fuji and tapped his forehead with a wispy limb. Fuji tapped the center of the ghost's skull mask in return. The old man frowned in thought for a moment more.

"I think you should take Duskull with you to the tower," Fuji said at last. "He is a resident, after all. He can guide you through the dangerous areas."

He blinked when the ghost appeared to agree and floated back over to Ash. Duskull tapped his forehead this time, surprising Ash with how solid the seemingly wispy appendage felt. The boy smiled back and mimicked Fuji by tapping Duskull in the center of his mask, which pleased the little ghost.

Ash glanced at Mr. Fuji again. "I still have to pick up my team from the Pokemon Center, but then I'll go to the tower. Is there anything else I should know?"

"Just a bit of folklore, if you're interested," the old man offered. When Ash nodded, he went on. "Pokemon Tower has actually been here since the ancient times. In fact, it was here long before Lavender Town was formed. We believe that a long-extinct culture made the tower in honor of a Legendary Pokemon, in the time when Kanto and Kalos were still one landmass."

That had his attention. Ash suddenly felt eager to find out more. "What was it?"

"Well, there are a few hypotheses," Fuji admitted. "There isn't much evidence for researchers to identify for sure one or another. However, I believe the tower was initially designed as a roost."

"A roost?"

"Have you heard of the Bell Tower in Johto?" Fuji asked. Ash shook his head, so the ex-Professor enlightened him. "The Bell Tower is, like the Pokemon Tower, an ancient construct. It was built in honor of the Legendary Pokemon Ho-oh, and served as a roost for the creature. The people who care for the tower still pass on the legend and continue to preserve it in hopes that one day, Ho-oh may return.

"I believe that given the geographical location of Pokemon Tower here in Lavender Town, it once served as a roost for a Legendary Pokemon thought to reside in Kalos—Yveltal. I think it used to live here before Kalos and Kanto split apart. The tower was on the edge of the continental drift and simply wasn't a part of the mass which became Kalos."

"Yveltal?" Ash repeated. He'd never heard of such a Pokemon. Ho-oh was a name he was familiar with, but Yveltal was alien to him.

"Yveltal is considered among Legendary Pokemon to be an incarnation of death. Its power drains the life force from all surrounding the creature. It would bear a certain irony that Yveltal may have once resided in Pokemon Tower, wouldn't you say?"

Ash nodded. That made sense to him; a Pokemon that embodied death resting in a place meant for the departed to be at peace. He wondered if that had ever made Yveltal sad—that its only companions would be those with no life left in them.

It seemed like a lonely existence.

Fuji smiled to himself and shook his head. "Anyways, I think that's enough rambling on my part. Go on, Ash. Good luck exploring the tower. I hope you find your ghost."

"Thank you," Ash replied. Duskull floated out of the room (still wearing his hat) and the boy turned to follow, but paused when Fuji stopped him one last time.

"If for whatever reason you do find yourself climbing the higher floors of the tower, do not attempt to enter the top floor. The ghost Pokemon guard it jealously and only Agatha is allowed access. I think it is a special place for them, though for what reason, I can only guess."

He nodded again. "I'll remember that. Thanks again."

* * *

After picking up his team from the Pokemon Center, Ash followed Duskull to the massive tower on the eastern edge of town. The construct was _enormous,_ far bigger than he'd expected. It was at least twelve floors high and every brick was jet-black. There was something about the place that seemed to warn him away, but Ash had come too far to just leave. Duskull led him to a large door and the two of them entered Pokemon Tower.

It was fairly dark inside. Ash couldn't see much of anything, aside from countless tombstones that lined the floor in rows. He reached for a Poke Ball, but Duskull tapped his forehead slightly harder than before. Ash paused. Perhaps it would be best to take his guide's advice and refrain from releasing a member of his team just yet.

"So, where are the ghosts, Duskull?" Ash asked quietly.

Duskull started to float away, turning for just a second to let Ash know he was supposed to follow. He walked after the small ghost. It was easy to keep up with him. Duskull wasn't one for speed.

They walked throughout the tower for a while. Ash climbed three flights of stairs and stopped at the fourth, the warnings from Joy and Mr. Fuji ringing in his ears. Yet Duskull persisted and Ash's own curiosity gave way to the ghost's beckoning. They hadn't seen a single ghost-type and the absence of them was eerie.

They were at the base of the stairs that would take them to the sixth floor when Duskull tapped his forehead again to stop him. He paused and Duskull did the same, the single red eye narrowing. Ash thought that the ghost looked angry and decided that whatever was above them was not friendly. The ghost gave Ash his hat back and then vanished though a wall. He waited quietly; Duskull clearly had something in mind.

He heard two dull thumps and then Duskull appeared at the top of the stairs, beckoning him to follow. Ash ran up and froze when he saw two men unconscious on the ground. He had no idea what Duskull had done to them, but he relaxed as he spotted the telltale rise and fall of their breathing.

Then he saw the black uniforms with the characteristic red "R" on the shirts and realized what had angered Duskull.

Alarm and then rage went through him as he comprehended the sight. Team Rocket. The same group that had been ambushing trainers in Mt. Moon to steal their Pokemon for profit. They were operating here, undoubtedly capturing ghosts for their own personal gain. It also explained why the League trainer hadn't returned—they had possibly captured her or worse.

Even if they were unconscious, Ash wasn't willing to leave them there armed. He grabbed their Poke Balls and stuffed them into his bag. He'd deal with their Pokemon later.

Now in a hurry, Duskull led Ash to the base of the stairs for the next floor and stopped when they heard footsteps coming down. Ash hid behind a tombstone and gripped Pyro's Poke Ball. If it came to a fight, he was more than ready to fight off the Rocket grunts. They weren't very powerful on their own, as he recalled. It was when they were in a group that they were the most dangerous.

Two grunts appeared at the base of the stairs. They looked around and called out. "Hey, you lazy bums! You're on the job! Respond when we call you—"

Duskull suddenly floated in behind them and his single eye glowed brightly. Red energy coalesced in a faint outline around the two men. They froze and grimaced tightly before falling to the ground. Ash recognized the move as Disable.

He switched his hand from Pyro's Poke Ball to Douse's and set the Poliwhirl loose. The grunts were unable to move, but Duskull had left them conscious. That was enough for Ash.

Douse seemed confused by the situation. Ash pointed at one of the Rocket grunts and muttered quietly. "Use Hypnosis. I need to find out why they're here, Douse."

The Poliwhirl nodded and stood in front of one of the grunts. Ash pulled up the immobilized man's head and made him look at the spiral pattern on Douse's belly. The pattern began to swirl, enrapturing the grunt through his eyes. When the man's gaze became sleepy, Ash got started.

"What's Team Rocket doing here?"

"Catching ghost-types," the grunt responded sleepily. "The creepy monsters are rare and worth a lot of money."

Ash's eyes narrowed. "How many of you are there?"

"Standard squad. Twenty grunts and an Admin."

"Who's the Admin?"

"Lady Ariana. She's the head of research for Team Rocket. Real beauty, she is."

Ash rolled his eyes. He didn't care if the Admin was a supermodel. She was an enemy and a criminal. "A League trainer was sent to the tower a couple of days ago. What happened to her?"

"Ariana insisted we keep her," the grunt muttered. "She had some badass Pokemon, but Ariana's got a nasty Vileplume. The little monster blasted the League trainer with Sleep Powder before she even knew we were here."

"Where are you keeping her and her Pokemon? And where are you keeping the ghosts?"

"Next floor. Ariana didn't want her in the way of all the stuff happening on the top of the tower. We caught most of the ghosts. The rest of em are just floating around somewhere."

He nodded. "Douse, put him to sleep."

Douse's spiral pattern sped up a bit and then the grunt passed out completely. Ash stood up with clenched fists. He was gonna give the Rockets a taste of their own medicine. Snatching the Poke Balls from the unconscious grunts, Ash gave his orders to the two Pokemon beside him.

"Duskull, find out if there are any other grunts on the next floor. Douse, you're with me. We're going to help out that trainer and then beat Team Rocket senseless."

The ghost vanished quickly. Douse just nodded and followed his trainer. Ash knew that Douse had never encountered Team Rocket before, but he had to rely on him. Hypnosis would be invaluable for incapacitating the grunts they ran into.

Ash and Douse waited until Duskull returned. When the ghost reappeared at the base of the stairs, he shook his head. There were no grunts on the next floor. The ones they had just knocked out were likely the only ones that had been guarding the League trainer. Without further ado, they made their way the next floor.

Duskull led them straight to the League trainer, who was tied up and still asleep from what had probably been a nasty dose of Sleep Powder. To Ash's surprise, he recognized her.

"Cynthia?" Ash snapped his fingers in front of her eyes to get her attention. He glanced nervously around the room. They had no way of knowing when the next group of grunts would come downstairs to check things out. "Cynthia, wake up. C'mon."

She wasn't waking up anytime soon and he felt kind of bad for what he was about to do, but they would need her strength to beat down Team Rocket. "Douse, use Wake-Up Slap…gently."

Douse offered the sleeping woman a sympathetic look before delivering a (by his standards) fairly gently slap to her face. Ash winced. The move wouldn't even make most Pokemon flinch, but that was a decent slap by human standards.

Cynthia's eyes shot open and she glared at him furiously. She opened her mouth to snap, but instead winced as her voice came out scratchy and weak. "What the…"

"Shh!" Ash quickly put a finger over his lips. "There are still Rockets here. They're the ones who knocked you out."

She looked pale, undoubtedly a side-effect from being forced to sleep for so long. Ash grabbed his canteen and offered her a drink, which she accepted greedily. Once the worst of her thirst was quenched, she took a moment to center herself.

Cynthia's eyes narrowed. "You said there were Rockets? What happened? I was climbing the tower…"

"You got a dose of Sleep Powder from their Admin's Vileplume," Ash told her. When she gave him a questioning look, he embellished. "I had my Poliwhirl hypnotize a couple of grunts on the floor below this one and got some answers out of them. You've been here for two days, I think. I'm sorry for waking you up like that, but you were really out of it."

"No, you probably just saved my life…what are you doing here, Ash?"

"I came here to catch a ghost-type Pokemon. Then I ran into the Rockets and well…you know the rest. I didn't know you were the League trainer they were talking about, though. That was just chance."

Cynthia nodded. "Are my Pokemon still here?"

"I think so. Duskull—"

He was cut off when the little ghost floated over with six Poke Balls orbiting around him. Ash blinked and gestured to Duskull. "Well, there you go."

"That's a relief. Can you get these binders off of me?"

Ash set Pyro loose immediately. The Charmeleon looked bewildered by the odd situation, but didn't question Ash when he ordered the fire-type to cut Cynthia's bonds. Once she was free, Pyro looked at his trainer again.

"There are Rockets here in the Pokemon Tower," he told his starter quietly. "We're going to give them a taste of their own medicine."

Pyro's eyes narrowed into slits and his lip curled in the beginnings of a snarl at the mention of Team Rocket.

Cynthia stood up and took her Poke Balls from Duskull graciously. "Thank you. But Ash, you need to leave. If what you said is true, there's another Rocket Admin here. You remember how strong Proton was in Mt. Moon, don't you?"

Ash protested immediately. "I want to stay and help. You're not in great shape right now, anyways. What if you get knocked out again?"

"That was dumb luck on their part and not something I'll allow them to repeat," she muttered. Grey eyes blazed dangerously and Ash repressed a shiver.

"Very well, I'll let you come along," Cynthia said. "But you _stay_ with me. Engage only the grunts and stay away from the Admin. I will deal with that one. They're on the upper floors, correct?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah. The Rocket we hypnotized said there were twenty of them and an Admin. There are sixteen grunts left now since we knocked out four of them. The Admin is a woman called Ariana. Apparently, she leads research for Team Rocket."

"Does she? Not for much longer. Come. We need to move quickly."

* * *

The next few floors were the same as the previous ones—guarded only by pairs of grunts. That was the case up until the final floor, where ten Rockets likely protected their Admin. Ash and Cynthia had yet to see them, but they had sent in Duskull to scout as he had done for the previous floors of the tower.

It also became apparent that there was an unusual power growing on this last floor. Ash had no idea what the power was, but it scared Duskull. The little ghost was shaking from the force Team Rocket had instigated. It was making them all uneasy.

Once Duskull reported back, Cynthia picked out one of her Poke Balls and looked at Ash. "I'm going to set one of my Pokemon on them. When the fighting starts, you stay behind me and do not stray. Do you understand?"

"I understand."

Cynthia nodded and tapped the release. Ash's eyes widened when a massive beast appeared before his eyes. It had dark blue scales covering its body, fins on its arms, back, and tail like a shark, and a sheer presence that could only belong to a dragon-type.

"This is Garchomp. She was my first Pokemon," Cynthia lifted her hand to rub the dragon's snout fondly. Garchomp rumbled a greeting to her trainer, observing her with concern, and then fixed pale yellow eyes on Ash. He did his best not to show the tension he felt—Garchomp held the same presence to her as Giovanni's Rhyperior. Maybe even more so.

The dragon seemed to deem him acceptable and then looked back to her trainer for instruction. Cynthia murmured something quietly to her, and Garchomp's eyes flared with aggression. Ash didn't get to ask what she had said because a second later, Garchomp had blurred up the stairs to the top floor and begun her assault.

Ash flinched as a violent tremor wracked the tower. The yells and screams of the Rocket grunts were easily audible above the furious growls of Garchomp as her wrath was unleashed. Cynthia had a satisfied smile on her face as she led Ash upstairs.

The whole place was chaos. Garchomp was darting at everyone in a Team Rocket uniform, knocking them out with swift blows from her claws, fins, and tail. Any Pokemon that the grunts tried to send out were defeated before they had even the foggiest idea what was happening. Ash caught sight of a woman in a white uniform barking orders and surmised that she was probably the Admin he'd heard of.

Cynthia had noticed her too. Once Garchomp had crushed all of the grunts, she strode towards Ariana with a firm glare plastered to her face.

"I'm going to be civil despite the fact that you saw fit to knock me out for a couple of days," Cynthia told her stiffly. "Give yourself up."

Ariana's response was to send out a Vileplume and a huge Arbok, which hissed and lashed its tail furiously. The serpent's hood spread and it managed to look rather intimidating. At least, it did to Ash.

Cynthia had no such reservations. "Garchomp, do it."

The dragon bared her fangs with righteous fury. She lunged at Arbok and her body became enveloped in blue-green energy—Dragon Rush, Ash realized. But a Dragon Rush that had been perfected to a degree that he hadn't even dreamed of. Arbok fired a Hyper Beam and Garchomp blazed right through it, impacting the serpent with devastating force. Vileplume frantically tried to hit the dragon with Sleep Powder, but then Garchomp unleashed a tongue of flame from its maw that cooked the grass-type instantly. Ariana's Pokemon were out not five seconds after their release.

Ariana looked shocked. "Who are you?!"

"That's none of your concern," Cynthia had a frown on her face. "Surrender. I'm not above letting Garchomp knock you out."

Garchomp sneered at Ariana, making the woman flinch briefly. For a moment, it seemed like she was going to surrender.

Then the temperature plummeted a good ten degrees and they all froze.

Ash startled as Duskull scrambled and tried to hide himself in his bag. The ghost was frantic—no, he was downright terrified. Ash looked back up as Ariana spun away from them to stare at a strange rock on the floor. To his surprise, it wriggled.

A moment later a blast of horribly dark energy erupted from the small stone and repelled himself, Ariana, and Cynthia away. Ash winced when he fell hard, but managed to look up just as the energy began to swirl around the stone, creating a vortex of purples and greens.

He wondered if this thing was the reason why the top floor of Pokemon Tower was banned to all but Agatha, but didn't get to think about it beyond that when the vortex suddenly grew a pair of slanted emerald eyes and a similarly colored fanged maw. The creature blinked and its eyes narrowed with anger. The three people watching could only stare as its ethereal mouth briefly closed.

The roar which tore from the creature's fangs made Ash's skin crawl and mashed down on every single primal instinct in his body. It was a command to flee from this creature's very presence, for it was not of this world and held no pity nor mercy for any living thing in its path. The ghost was uncontrollable fury incarnate.

Nothing had ever made him want to run before, but this thing was doing a better job of it than anything else he had encountered prior to it.

Ash saw ghostly black energy start to gather at its mouth and realized it was about to fire a Shadow Ball. He reached for Sobek's Poke Ball, knowing that the dark-type was probably his only hope of fighting this thing, but he was stopped as Ariana threw a Poke Ball at the creature. It was sucked in before it had the opportunity to attack, and the device hit the ground with a clatter.

There was a pregnant pause of utter silence. Then the Poke Ball exploded and the creature sprang free. Its eyes were widened with surprise, but the shock was brief. The emerald slits glared daggers at Ariana a second later and the Rocket Admin turned to run for the stairs. The creature roared again and unleashed a howling gale of black wind, blowing her away and sending the limp bodies of the unconscious Rockets flying all over the room.

Ash dove behind a tombstone to hide from the blast and cringed at the bloodcurdling howl the creature made. It was beyond reason. It would kill them all before letting even one of them escape, and it would not differentiate between the Rockets and himself.

Then Garchomp roared and lunged at it. The creature seemed surprised that something was actually _attacking_ it, and shrieked when Garchomp spat a sphere of emerald energy at it. Ash watched as the Dragon Pulse made contact and exploded, knocking the creature back. It generated a second Shadow Ball and fired it this time, but Garchomp blocked it with the fins on her arms and roared at the creature again.

Cynthia was calmly giving orders to the dragon—Ash had no idea how she was doing it in the face of this terrifying entity, but it was awe-inspiring to watch. The creature that was making him freeze up was helpless in the face of Garchomp's onslaught, and he watched, incredulous, as the fury in its eyes turned to hesitance, then panic. Garchomp was overpowering it, proving attack after attack that she held more power than the ghost.

In desperation it seemed, the ghost tried to hit Garchomp with a Hyper Beam. The dragon again braced herself with her fins and took the harsh orange beam head-on. She blew it away when the Hyper Beam sputtered out and fired another Dragon Pulse, this time hitting the stone that the creature had originated from.

It gave out a wailing cry and suddenly all the violet and green energy retreated back into the stone. Cynthia had a Poke Ball flying through the air before Ash could blink, sucking the creature into it. This time, the ball wriggled on the floor and went still shortly after it had been contained.

Ash let out a breath he wasn't aware he'd been holding. The temperature went back to normal and the malicious air the creature had exuded was gone.

He jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Cynthia watching him with concern. "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah," he managed. "I'm fine."

She nodded and looked up as Garchomp came over with the Poke Ball containing the creature in one of her claws. Cynthia took the ball gratefully and looked at it with a frown. "It seems as though we found out what was causing the influx of spirits here."

Ash blinked. "Wasn't that caused by Team Rocket capturing all the ghosts?"

"No. Their presence disturbed the ghosts, yes, but it didn't cause this," Cynthia told him. She held the Poke Ball up. "This is a Spiritomb. It's a ghost Pokemon that forms by gathering hundreds of spirits and concentrating them in the stone we saw—an Odd Keystone. It likely had been slumbering here until the Rockets came. They probably tried to awaken it in order to capture Spiritomb and use it for themselves."

"Well, they definitely succeeded in waking it up," Ash muttered.

Cynthia smiled with amusement. "I'll keep Spiritomb with me for now. I'll have to talk with Agatha, though, to decide what happens to it. Come on—we should get to the Pokemon Center. I have a call to make to the League. These Rockets can't just be left here to escape. Garchomp, watch them."

Garchomp grinned and nodded, stalking over to the unconscious form of Ariana and sitting down beside her. Ash had a feeling that the Admin wouldn't be moving much, even if she woke up.

That was fine with him. He just wanted to get out of the tower.

* * *

A few hours later, Ash watched as League forces came out of the tower with the Rockets in custody. He had given them the Poke Balls he retrieved from the unconscious grunts on the lower floors once they arrived. Cynthia was currently speaking with the leader of the group, but whatever they were talking about was lost to Ash.

"Seems you didn't find your ghost."

He jumped and spun around, but relaxed when he found the voice belonged to Mr. Fuji. The old man smiled with amusement. "Though you look like you sure have seen one."

Ash rolled his eyes. "Ha ha. Very funny."

"It is, depending on your point of view," Fuji chuckled. "Still, I'm glad you made it out of the tower alright. We owe you a great deal, boy. If you hadn't insisted on going, those Rockets probably would have made off with many of our town's precious ghost Pokemon."

"I didn't really do much," he protested, embarrassed by the praise. "Cynthia did all the real work. I just woke her up."

"Still, without you, who knows what may have happened? Don't sell yourself short, Ash. Few trainers would have had the courage to keep climbing the tower."

Ash shrugged helplessly, but Fuji just smiled. "By the way, where is Duskull?"

"Oh, he dove into my bag when Spiritomb…huh?" Ash looked into his bag and frowned. "Um…he was here a little while ago."

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure he'll come around before too long," the old man told him. "He's probably in the Day Care as we speak, playing with some of the little ones."

Their conversation was cut short as Cynthia walked over to him. Ash faced the older trainer with a question.

"The Rockets are taken care of?"

"Yes. They'll be taken to a prison for the time being until we can get someone from the League to interrogate them. It seems Ariana has quite a bit of information regarding their organization—we'll probably have Sabrina get it out of her."

Ash nodded and Cynthia gave him an apologetic smile. "That said, with the current state of things, I'm afraid Pokemon Tower is going to have restricted access for a while. Only Agatha and her people will be allowed inside. You'll have to put your ghost hunt on hold."

He smirked. "That's okay. I'm just happy I got to cause Team Rocket trouble."

That got him a brief frown, but it disappeared from the tall woman's face just as quickly. "What will you do now, Ash?"

"I'll probably make my way to Celadon," Ash replied. "That was the plan after I caught a ghost-type. Besides, I need to hit the department store there. A few of my Pokemon need TMs to give them more options."

Cynthia was quiet for a moment. "How about this? The fastest way to Celadon is through Saffron City. I'll come along with you as far as Saffron, if that's alright with you. I need to speak with Sabrina."

"Um, sure!" The offer caught him by surprise. Ash didn't really know much about Cynthia, but he knew that she was a powerful trainer beyond any other he'd met before. There was a lot he could learn from her—first and foremost how to help Pyro master Dragon Rush.

She smiled. "Great. We'll be staying here for the night so I can rest, but we can leave first thing tomorrow morning. Does that work for you?"

"Yes," he agreed.

"Excellent. Well, I've still got some things to take care of. I'll meet you in the Pokemon Center tomorrow, alright?"

He nodded. Cynthia turned to Mr. Fuji and bowed slightly to the old man, who returned the curtesy. Then she spun around and left, her long blonde hair swaying behind her.

Mr. Fuji looked back at Ash. "I'd best head home. The young Pokemon are sure to be a little nervous from all the excitement out here."

"Alright," Ash replied. He held his hand out to the elder, who shook it with a grateful smile.

"Again, thank you Ash. I wish you luck on your journey."

They said their goodbyes and parted. Ash headed to the Pokemon Center, suddenly feeling exhaustion from the intense day catching up with him.

* * *

The next day he was immediately faced with an astronomical problem: his hat was missing.

Ash practically tore his room and bag apart looking for it, but no matter where he checked, he could not find it. He briefly worried he had left it in Pokemon Tower, but dismissed the thought. He had taken it off just before going to bed, he was certain.

He searched for an hour before finally giving it up. It was frustrating—it was a great hat!—but there was no point in going nuts over something that could be replaced. Ash sighed. That wasn't exactly the best way to start out his day. He was more than ready to leave Lavender Town now.

No ghost-type on his belt and now his hat was missing. Wonderful.

Cynthia was waiting for him in the lobby of the Pokemon Center. She watched him sit down and blinked at the annoyed expression on his face. "Is something wrong?"

"My hat went missing," he muttered. "I know it's not that big a deal, but I really liked that hat."

She smiled sympathetically and waited for him to start eating breakfast before she began to talk. "This trip shouldn't take very long. A few days, perhaps. Route Eight is rather short and it's basically just a straight road between Saffron and Lavender Town."

Ash took a drink and swallowed. "I was wondering if you could help me with a move my Charmeleon knows."

"And that move would be?"

"Dragon Rush," he answered. Cynthia looked surprised, so he continued. "It's an egg move he knows innately. But Pyro can't seem to get the right kind of energy for Dragon Rush. He just tackles opponents as hard as he can."

"Hmm…" She considered what he told her thoughtfully. "At best, Garchomp can only point Charmeleon in the right direction. If we had more time, then I could help you more, but given that we'll only have a few days…"

"Anything at all would be helpful," Ash assured her.

"Well, then we'll do what we can with the time we have," she promised.

* * *

Their first day of travel was actually rather quiet, and the pace was sedate since Cynthia was still recovering from her ordeal in the Tower. Few trainers were traveling back and forth between Lavender and Saffron it seemed, though that might have been due to the high temperature. Ash battled as many of them as he could, while Cynthia simply watched. She analyzed every fight Ash took part in, silent for the most part. When they got back on their way, she would offer a few comments regarding the battle.

They stopped for lunch at midday and made themselves comfortable under the shade of a small tree. It was baking hot outside and any relief from the heat was more than welcome.

Ash set his team loose and passed each of them a can of Pokemon food. Pikachu, Eevee, and Douse settled down close to him because they weren't keen about the heat. However, much to his amusement, Pyro and Sobek went straight into an open patch of sunlight and started napping together. He knew they loved warm temperatures, but watching the pair of reptiles pile up in a tangle of scaly tails, legs, and arms was funny.

They thrived in the heat and piling up together made them happy. It made him happy too, seeing his most aggressive Pokemon getting along so well.

Cynthia seemed to find it amusing as well. "They're right in their element, aren't they?"

"Yeah," Ash agreed, chuckling when Sobek opened his huge jaws and closed his eyes in bliss. It was the croc's way of expelling excess heat, but he knew that Sobek took pleasure in showing off his fangs.

"I have to say Ash, I'm impressed," Cynthia remarked, gesturing to his team. "Last time I saw you, the only Pokemon you had were Charmeleon, Pikachu, and Sandile. You've built up quite the team."

"Thank you," he replied. Pikachu rubbed up against his arm and Ash scratched the mouse's ears fondly. "They did all the hard work."

Her eyes lingered on Eevee. "If you don't mind my asking, where did you get Eevee? They're quite rare."

Ash frowned slightly. "Actually, I adopted her from Officer Jenny in Cerulean City. She had been confiscated from an illegal Pokemon mill and didn't like people at all. I'm taking care of her as best I can, but…she still won't train with me. She doesn't really get along with anyone on the team, either."

Eevee offered him a rebellious look, confirming his words without placing herself on his side.

Cynthia hid a small smile from the little Pokemon. "It looks like she's healthy. You've done a good job caring for her, even if she won't train with you yet."

She pondered Eevee for another moment before pulling out her own Poke Ball. "I have an idea. Perhaps Eevee should meet one of my Pokemon. I think she's more likely to get along with this one."

Ash watched curiously as Cynthia tapped the release and set loose a small, canine Pokemon with beautiful icy silver fur. It had deep blue eyes and what looked like ice crystals on its forehead. To his surprise, Eevee perked up at the creature and stared at it intently.

"This is Glaceon," Cynthia introduced. "She's the ice-type evolution of Eevee. Glaceon, this is Ash and his team. They're new friends of mine."

Glaceon's elegant tail waved slightly as she made a soft call, breathing cool air upon Ash and his team. He shivered slightly and wondered how powerful the ice-type was—the temperature around her was dropping fast despite the sun's heat.

Eevee was actually the first one to approach Glaceon and sniffed her curiously. Glaceon watched the little normal-type and sat down, patiently waiting for Eevee to complete her inspection. Ash smiled at the sight—he didn't recall ever seeing the small Pokemon so relaxed.

Once Eevee had finished taking in Glaceon, she sat down and looked up at the ice-type, unsure what to do next. Glaceon's eyes glittered with amusement, then she used one paw to herd Eevee closer to her. Before Eevee could react, Glaceon was licking at her fur. She tried to protest briefly, but the ice-type made a low purr that settled the smaller Pokemon down. Eevee slowly relaxed, giving Glaceon the chance to groom the youngster.

Cynthia smiled. "Nothing quite calms a young Pokemon like being with an older one of the same line. You'll find that many species are like that."

"I'll definitely remember," Ash promised. He was amazed at how easily Glaceon had calmed Eevee and gotten close to her. It had taken him a _month_ just for Eevee to accept him, and she still didn't really like or listen to him at all.

While Eevee dozed under Glaceon's care, Cynthia looked over to Pyro. "Charmeleon is the one that knows Dragon Rush, if I remember right?"

"Yes. But like I said, he can't use it well," Ash scratched the back of his head.

"I'd like to see it," she told him. Cynthia stood up and took another Poke Ball out. This one released Garchomp, and the sight of the massive dragon startled all of his team except for Eevee, who Ash was pretty sure was half-asleep.

Garchomp was a fan of the sun's warmth too, because she immediately walked into the light and growled happily as heat washed over her scales. Cynthia glanced at Ash. "Bring your Charmeleon over."

Ash nodded eagerly. "Pyro! Get up, buddy. Training time."

Pyro untangled himself from the pile of scales (much to Sobek's annoyance) and walked over to Garchomp fearlessly. He made a growl and the dragon looked down at him for a moment before snorting. She clearly didn't find him very threatening.

Cynthia seemed amused by the fire-type's aggression. "Ash, have Charmeleon use Dragon Rush on Garchomp. She needs to see where he's at to work on it."

Ash glanced at Pyro. "Do as she says."

The fire-type snarled with delight and leapt back from the dragon several meters. He tensed for a moment, pupils narrowing to slits, then lunged at her. Garchomp simply stood and waited, not even flinching when Pyro crashed into her plated belly.

Pyro recoiled from the impact and looked at the dragon with a dumbfounded expression. Garchomp bared her fangs in a mockery of a grin and made a chuffing sound that Ash interpreted as laughter.

Cynthia had her arms crossed as she analyzed the attack. She got Pyro's attention by whistling and gestured at Garchomp. "Again."

The Charmeleon glanced at Ash first, but when he nodded, the fire-type repeated the attack. Again, Garchomp did not move—literally not even an inch. She was so much bigger and heavier than Pyro that his attacks couldn't make her budge. Cynthia had Pyro repeat Dragon Rush thrice more before she looked at her starter.

"Garchomp? What do you think?"

Garchomp considered Pyro with a surprisingly thoughtful expression for several moments. Then she looked at Cynthia and made a light growl. The trainer nodded and looked at Ash next. "We'll give you a visual example. One of the best ways for a Pokemon to learn a new move is by watching another use it. Your Charmeleon understands the rough concept of Dragon Rush, but he lacks the finesse required to master it."

Cynthia turned back to Garchomp. "Go."

Garchomp growled at Pyro, getting the fire-type's undivided attention. She crouched slightly, bending at the knees and lowering her blunt skull. Ash felt the dragon-type energy gathering before he saw it, making the air shiver as it coalesced around Garchomp in a blue-green aura. The dragon's pupils narrowed into slits and she launched herself across the grass with unnerving speed. The sheer force of the charge was enough to send a whirlwind in every direction that was powerful enough to almost knock Ash over.

Pyro stood his ground against the blast of air and stared, transfixed by the power Garchomp had displayed. The dragon came to a stop, turned, and then performed the move again. When she was done, she looked at Pyro and made a series of growls and hisses. Whatever she was saying, Pyro apparently understood.

The fire-type crouched slightly to mimic Garchomp and lowered his head, though he must have done so a bit too much because the dragon stalked over and used her claw to lift Pyro's chin a few inches. She snapped her jaws together loudly and Pyro lunged.

Ash was intrigued. Before now, Dragon Rush had been little more than a rough tackling attack. Pyro didn't bother on technique because blunt force was usually enough to do the job. However, Garchomp's Dragon Rush was far more refined than that. Whereas Pyro's technique was similar to a bludgeon, Garchomp's was intensified to that of a spear—overwhelming raw power with a focal point to concentrate the damage upon.

Pyro's Dragon Rush looked better just after the first try. He didn't charge recklessly and seemed to be focusing on something. Garchomp was, however, clearly dissatisfied because she growled again and had Pyro repeat the move at least a dozen times. She then provided another example and had her fire-type charge practice again.

Cynthia got Ash's attention and gestured back to the shade. "We can leave them to it. Garchomp isn't about to stop now that she's gotten started."

Ash nodded and followed her. There wasn't anything he could do for Pyro, anyways. Garchomp was his teacher now, and Ash had a feeling that her new student would not be getting a break anytime soon.

The dragon had high standards and he doubted she would settle for anything less than perfection.

* * *

Their daily pattern over the next few days repeated in a similar fashion; they would travel for a few hours, Ash challenging any trainers he came across, then settled down for lunch at midday and later in the evening to make camp. During any long stop they made, Garchomp dragged Pyro away from Ash and ran him ragged in the training for Dragon Rush. His starter was dead tired by the time they stopped for the night and Ash always gave him a sympathetic look when Pyro passed out.

Garchomp was a great teacher, but she was utterly merciless.

While Pyro continued his harsh training, Ash focused on the rest of his team. He often pitted Sobek and Douse against each other, making sure that they stayed on their toes. Sobek _hated_ getting hit by water-type moves and Douse did not enjoy being bitten by his crocodilian team mate. Needless to say, this resulted in a variety of tricks on either side in their efforts to strike without being stricken.

Ash had actually gotten an idea with Pikachu's training—it seemed like he had the same problem with Volt Tackle that Pyro had with Dragon Rush. With that in mind, he let Pikachu attend some of Pyro's lessons with Garchomp in an effort to make Volt Tackle more effective. When the mouse wasn't working with them, Ash had him practicing Electro Ball. The move wasn't difficult to learn (as Surge had told him in Vermillion) but it did require concentration Pikachu had yet to learn. Still, he was pretty sure Pikachu would have it down before too long.

He considered the most progress to have been made by Eevee. Glaceon's presence was a boon—she had single-handedly helped Eevee relax and open up. Ash had almost startled when Eevee crawled into his lap one evening after a particularly long grooming session with Glaceon and fallen asleep. She had never willingly gotten that close to him.

Eevee had even begun to train, though only with Glaceon. She was obviously behind the rest of his team, but he had to admit, her Shadow Ball was quite powerful.

Ash really enjoyed traveling and training with Cynthia. It was the most fun he'd had in a while, and the elite trainer was incredibly knowledgeable. She often told him of legends from the Sinnoh region, ranging anywhere from the two lunar islands to the deities that were said to govern time and space. Ash soon felt a great desire to see Sinnoh personally. One day, he promised himself.

However, all was not sunshine and daisies on their trip. Every night, Ash got an eerie feeling that they were being watched. He hadn't noticed anything unusual and Cynthia said it was possible that the Spiritomb she had captured was emanating negative feelings from inside its Poke Ball, but that didn't seem right to him. What he felt wasn't negative, just…odd.

It got to the point on their final night of traveling that he couldn't bring himself to sleep. Ash glanced around the camp warily, but found that everyone was asleep and apparently unaffected by what he was feeling.

He gave up after a while that he would see anything and decided to have a drink before sleeping. Ash opened his bag—

Ash barely stopped himself from shrieking when he found a skull and a big red eye staring back at him. He threw a hand over his mouth and took a minute to calm his pounding heart. Meanwhile, Duskull floated out of his bag and made a quiet snicker.

He glared at the ghost and hissed under his breath. "Duskull, what are you doing here? You're supposed to be back in Lavend—that's _my hat!"_

The ghost was wearing his missing hat and seemed to take even more mischievous glee out of the astonished look on Ash's face. He made to grab the hat, but Duskull easily evaded him. Ash's glare returned tenfold. "Duskull, give me my hat back."

Duskull shook his head and used one of his wispy arms to take the hat off. He held it away from Ash and then pointed at the boy with his spare arm. Ash frowned. "What do you want?"

Duskull again gestured to him, but Ash's frown didn't go away. The ghost rolled his single eye and then in one smooth move, plopped the hat on Ash's head and tapped an empty Poke Ball on his belt. The boy blinked as Duskull was sucked into the ball and settled there in moments.

Ash didn't really know what to do. Duskull had captured himself…was he supposed to wake someone up and say something about this? A ghost had been tagging along with them for days and no one had noticed. He helplessly wondered what to do for a few more minutes before shrugging and giving up. He'd figure out what to do tomorrow morning.

At least he had his hat back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Arctic storm is over and the animals all survived. Had some damage, but luckily we got to it real quick and it's been fixed. I'm really tired. Next chapter will include the first major change I've made to the story thus far.
> 
> Here's the team update for this chapter, including Cynthia's team.
> 
> Ash Ketchum
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Pyro (Male Charmeleon)
> 
> Pikachu (Male)
> 
> Sobek (Male Krokorok)
> 
> Eevee (Female)
> 
> Douse (Male Poliwhirl)
> 
> Duskull (Male)
> 
> /
> 
> Cynthia
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Garchomp (Female)
> 
> Glaceon (Female)
> 
> Spiritomb


	7. Sunny Days

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ash and Cynthia meet Wes and Rui. Wes picks a fight. Entei's got a fiery temper. Raikou is too big to be a lap cat. He also doesn't care. Paul's been busy and Erika needs to give her poor nose a break from Gloom.

_Chapter Seven: Sunny Days_

"I see you've gotten your hat back," Cynthia commented after Ash released Duskull. She was observing the little ghost with amusement as he snickered. Duskull had been a surprise for them all, but he was friendly to everyone—Pikachu especially. He mentally groaned when he comprehended the pranks that the two of them could come up with once they really started to get along.

Ash smirked and adjusted the hat upon Cynthia mentioning it. "Yeah. I didn't expect Duskull to tag along with us, though. You'd think we'd have noticed him by now."

"A lot of ghost Pokemon can hide themselves completely. If he didn't want to be seen, then he made certain of it. I think he was probably just watching you to verify that you were a good trainer."

Duskull nodded and floated over to tap Ash on the forehead. He smiled and poked the ghost-type's mask back, prompting Duskull to chuckle and float off again, this time towards Pyro. The only member of the team that their new friend had any aversion to was Sobek—probably because he was a dark-type. Ash suspected that Duskull would get over it before long, though. It wasn't like Sobek was openly malicious.

He realized he knew nothing about Duskull before long and quickly pulled out his Pokedex, pointing it at the ghost to initiate the scanning process.

_Duskull, the Requiem Pokemon. It pursues those it chases wherever they go and passes through walls no matter how thick they may be. Duskull wander throughout the night and gather in numbers during the pitch-black of the new moon._

_This Duskull is male and knows the moves: Astonish, Disable, Protect, Confuse Ray, and Shadow Sneak. Its ability is Levitate, which allows Duskull to avoid ground type attacks._

Ash considered Duskull's move pool thoughtfully. He mostly knew defensive and status-afflicting moves, but had few actual methods of attack. They would have to work on expanding that.

Duskull floated back over to him and stole Ash's hat before he could do anything about it. He smirked as the ghost circled him, wearing his hat in a humorous gesture. Ash held his hand out under the small ghost and watched as Duskull simply levitated above it.

"So, I can see that you want to travel with us," Ash began. "I'm more than happy to bring you along. Would you like a nickname? Some of the others have one."

Duskull nodded. Ash already had a few ideas, so he listen them off for the ghost until they found one that his newest partner liked.

"Spectre."

That made Duskull do a forward flip, which Ash interpreted as excitement. The ghost tapped Ash's forehead, which he wryly returned. "Spectre it is. Glad to have you with us."

He faced the rest of his team and pointed each of them out in turn for Spectre. "Alright, let me introduce you to everyone. That's Pyro."

The Charmeleon thrashed his tail and spat a gout of flame in the air, getting a snort from Sobek. Spectre floated over to the fire-type and tapped the strong red horn on his head. Pyro swatted at him, but the ghost had found out what he wanted, so Ash continued.

"Pikachu."

Pikachu chittered and waved his paw at Spectre, which the Duskull returned with his wispy arms. The ghost floated around the mouse for a moment and poked his tail. Spectre received an electric surprise however, and recoiled when the pranking shock traveled up his wispy limbs. Pikachu sniggered at his success and grinned at the ghost innocently. Spectre eyed him curiously, then moved on.

"Sobek."

This was where the Duskull was most hesitant, especially when Sobek bared his fangs and growled loudly, trying to outdo Pyro's show of strength. The Charmeleon was annoyed by that and snapped at him, but didn't attack. Spectre observed Sobek from a few meters away and seemed satisfied with that.

"Eevee."

Spectre approached Eevee and tapped her forehead immediately. The little normal-type looked annoyed, but she was in a good enough mood to make a sound of greeting. Spectre happily floated around her in a circle, depositing Ash's hat on her head before he continued on to the last member of the group. He smirked when Eevee shook herself thoroughly to toss the accessory off and appeared rather miffed.

"And Douse."

The Poliwhirl waved at Spectre, recognizing him from the Pokemon Tower. Spectre waved back and tapped Douse's spiral pattern. Douse blinked at him and tapped the ghost back on his mask. Spectre made a cheery sound at that, pleased by the action.

Ash smiled at the ghost. "This is our team. We'll add on to it as we travel, but this is everyone for now. I want to become the greatest Pokemon Master in the world and I'll do my best to make you as strong as you can be. How does that sound?"

Spectre nodded and made a hollow cackle. Ash figured that was as good an answer as he would get, so he looked back to Cynthia. "I guess we're ready to go."

She smiled. "Good. Saffron City is still a couple of days away. You'll have plenty of time to get to know each other."

* * *

Ash and Cynthia were setting up camp for the night. They planned on getting to Saffron tomorrow, hopefully around noon with any luck.

Garchomp was busy grilling Pyro with Dragon Rush again. The Chameleon was really getting the hang of it by now—he still had trouble mustering up much of any dragon-type energy, but his form was miles ahead of where they'd started at.

Eevee was content to take her last night with Glaceon and accept the ice-type's grooming. Cynthia's Roserade was also present, indulging the rest of Ash's team with some spars, along with a fighting-type Pokemon he'd never seen before. Cynthia called the jackal-like fighter Lucario.

Roserade and Lucario weren't doing much attacking (and honestly, Ash had a funny feeling the spar would've been over immediately if they had) and instead deflected or dodged most of the attacks from his team. It was a good experience, facing enemies they'd never encountered before.

There was still a bit of daylight left when Lucario stopped in the middle of blocking Douse's Mega Punch and jerked his head towards a nearby trail leading out of the nearby forest. He barked once, sharply, and everyone immediately stopped what they were doing to pay attention.

Ash blinked as three distinct shapes walked out of the dark woods—a young man, a girl about the same age, and an Umbreon trotting at the girl's side. They looked like typical travelers, although the guy looked a bit sketchy with a roguish, lazy sneer on his face.

The girl seemed kinder, though. She waved and smiled brightly as the travelers started to pass their camp altogether, but then the guy caught sight of Garchomp and halted. He blinked, let his gaze slide from the dragon to her trainer, and recognition sparked.

"Well, shit," the young man smirked, turning to face them. "I didn't think I'd see you of all people out here."

Cynthia raised an eyebrow. "Nor did I expect to see you. It's…Wes, isn't it?"

"That'd be me," he confirmed, walking closer with Umbreon and the girl close behind.

"What're you doing out here?"

"Just finished taking down Sabrina," Wes shrugged. "Thought we'd take the long road on the way to Vermillion. Been a while since we've seen the ocean."

Ash was totally lost. Wes spared him a glance and snickered. "Who's the runt?"

Pyro growled, but Wes didn't even give the Chameleon a hint that he'd heard the threat. Ash's eyes narrowed. "What's it to you?"

"Oh, it's nothing to me," Wes sneered. "I'm just wondering what a big shot Elite Four Trainee like Cynthia Solace is doing with some kid."

"Wes, be nice," the girl scolded, reaching up to cuff the back of his head.

Ash was a little surprised when the young man ran a hand through his messy, sand-colored hair and shrugged. "Sorry. Old habits."

"I heard you grew up in Orre," Cynthia replied. "I get it."

"I don't think you do, but I'm not interested in talking about that crappy place," Wes muttered.

_Orre?_ Ash wondered. The roughneck, wasteland of a region where Cipher had originated. A shady place full of shady people. Not the ideal location to grow up in.

"Enough of that," Wes shook his head and fire blazed in his eyes as a dangerous grin curled his lips up. "I didn't think I'd meet another trainer anywhere near Sabrina's level anytime soon, let alone you. Up for a battle?"

Cynthia's eyes gleamed and she cocked her head to the side just the slightest. "Daylight's almost gone, so would a one-on-one suffice?"

"Works for me," Wes agreed without hesitating. "Rui."

"Yeah, yeah," the girl rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "C'mon Umbreon."

"Ash, get your team out of the way," Cynthia ordered, her tone suddenly no-nonsense. Ash didn't bother to ask why.

He called his team to his side, away from the pair of trainers currently facing off. Garchomp, Glaceon, Roserade, and Lucario were at Cynthia's back in an instant.

Rui skipped over and stopped near Ash. "Hi. I'm Rui. Sorry about Wes, he's a little…snappy."

Umbreon snickered, but its ears pricked curiously when it caught sight of Eevee, who stared back at it with equal interest. The dark-type approached slowly, stretching its neck out to sniff at its pre-evolution, who matched it.

Ash smiled at the exchange and nodded at Rui. "I'm Ash. Cynthia and I met up at Lavender Town and decided to travel to Saffron together. She's been helping my team train up a bit."

"Neat!" Rui exclaimed, infinitely more polite and friendly than her traveling companion. "Gunning for the Indigo League?"

"Yep."

"So is Wes," she turned to watch the face-off as Wes extracted an Ultra Ball from his belt.

Wes' grin became feral as the device enlarged in his hand and he threw it out onto the field.

Ash's eyes grew wide when an enormous shape emerged from the Ultra Ball—a resplendent, fierce beast that dwarfed all the other Pokemon. Gleaming brown fur covered the massive creature, and each of its mighty paws were wider than Ash's head. A glorious mask of gold and silver covered the beast's face, with a crimson frame of spines on either side. The mane at its back was a thick cloud of billowing ash, funneled between two sets of thick spikes.

When it set its fiery eyes on Cynthia, the beast opened its maw, baring enormous fangs, and howled a challenge. Embers sparked from its parted jaws and the ground at its feet began to sizzle and burn as its long, black claws were unsheathed.

The awe and splendor was almost ruined when Umbreon gave a yip and rushed over to the beast, who lowered its head so the dark-type could lick its snout. It watched, amused, as its companion returned to Eevee, who had been startled by the beast's arrival and fluffed up until she was almost twice her original size.

Wes smirked at Cynthia's frown. "What's wrong? Never seen an Entei before?"

"Not up close, no," she admitted, gauging the beast as it sat down on its haunches, studying her in-turn. Even sitting down, the enormous fire-type was seven feet tall at the shoulder, easily, and had to weigh at least a few hundred pounds.

"Entei?" Ash wondered aloud. "The legendary Pokemon?"

"One of them, yes," Rui admitted. "Wes captured Entei in Orre. He was being used by criminals there. Entei's a bit of a loner, but once he warms up to you, he's the most loyal friend you'll find."

Ash processed that silently, a little dazed as he stared at the incredibly rare Pokemon. There were some species out there, like Entei, who were considered "legends" for their absurd rarity and notorious strength. Locating them was difficult enough, but capturing and training one of the famed creatures was even more difficult. To achieve such a thing was the mark of a truly powerful trainer, and legends were rarely owned by anyone not at the level of the Elite Four.

Entei, like most others, was considered to be a "minor legend". As rare and powerful as it was, along with Pokemon like Kanto's Bird Trio, there were some legends said to be too powerful to catch or train, and "mythical" Pokemon who were so obscenely hard to find, few knew whether they were even real.

Cynthia assessed Entei for a minute in silence before she whistled sharply. "Garchomp."

The dragon darted onto the battlefield and splayed her clawed arms wide in a show of dominance. At her full height, she matched Entei, who rose back onto all fours and faced his foe with a deep, rumbling growl that sent a shiver down Ash's spine.

"The rest of you, damage control," Cynthia ordered. Roserade, Glaceon, and Lucario immediately spread out, keeping a fair distance from the two fighters.

"Expecting things to get messy?" Wes snickered.

"Don't get too overconfident," Cynthia warned. "Entei won't be the first legend Garchomp's brought down."

Entei snarled at that, spitting flames. Wes smirked. "We'll see. Extreme Speed."

Cynthia scowled. "Double Team. Hone Claws."

Garchomp split into a dozen illusions as she slid her claws against each other, moving in a rush as Entei crouched and launched itself into a blur. The beast pounced on one Garchomp and growled when it disappeared, twisting in the same motion to leap at another with fire tearing from its maw.

"Dragon Rush."

Entei's jaws closed on air as Garchomp ducked under the Fire Fang and _belted_ up into the fire-type's exposed belly. The beast howled, then spun with a snarl and snapped at her tail. Garchamp narrowly avoided the bite and twisted as she landed, allowing the Double Team to fade away as she lunged at Entei's flank with another Dragon Rush.

"Lava Plume!" Wes snapped.

Entei roared as the cloud at its back seared to life, exploding in every direction with blazing flame and ash. Garchomp slowed only long enough to whip up a Sandstorm to combat the Lava Plume, then dove through the weaker flames to ram her full might into Entei's shoulder.

The beast snarled again and lurched forward, clamping his enormous jaws onto Garchomp's fin. Garchomp roared in pain and jammed a Dragon Claw into Entei's exposed neck, causing the beast to jerk away with a yelp. It opened its mouth and a corona of flame bellowed forth, forcing the dragon to leap away.

"Flare Blitz!"

"Dig."

Entei pounced onto the hole Garchomp's tail vanished into, spitting more fire into the tunnel. Ash heard an enraged bellow echo through the tunnel, and then Garchomp barreled out headfirst with a savage Giga Impact.

Entei recoiled as the unforgiving attack crushed his throat, sending him flying back. He barely kept his footing, choking out embers and looking up just as the furious dragon bore down on him again.

Garchomp snarled, a Sandstorm tearing around her as she assaulted the beast with all her might. Dragon Claws tore through Entei's thick pelt and when the enormous fire-type lifted a paw to try and swat her away, she dove down and clamped her terribly powerful jaws into the beast's ankle. The Crunch ripped through fur and muscle until they heard the crack of bone.

Entei howled, spitting and biting as Garchomp backed off with a growl in her throat. The beast limped on three legs, his body an inferno to prevent the dragon from getting close again.

Wes scowled. "Fire Blast!"

Entei spat a five-pronged explosion in Garchomp's direction, but the dragon dug underground again and popped up close to Entei again. Instead of going for another physical attack, she launched a Dragon Pulse in the beast's face, sending him staggering again. Entei roared in blind fury, but his opponent did not yield to his infernal rage. If anything, the beast's frustration made Garchomp sneer.

Ash chanced a glance at Cynthia and noted her frown. She looked a little disappointed.

He himself was a bit perplexed. Entei was powerful, yes, but its technique was sloppy. It wasted a lot of unnecessary energy and didn't seem experienced in combat against foes of greater or equal power to itself. He wondered if it was too used to just overwhelming weaker opponents—against Garchomp, it had only done a little damage.

"Enough," Cynthia declared. Garchomp leapt back to her master, still watching Entei sharply. The beast growled, but lowered himself onto all fours to lick at his wounded paw.

Wes looked bitter, but…not quite surprised as he walked up to the fire-type. "You did well."

Entei growled again, clearly not agreeing, but too tired and hurt to care.

Cynthia approached with Garchomp at her side, still frowning. "You haven't trained him much, have you?"

Wes pulled a pack from over his shoulder and extracted a number of potions. "Entei only recently recovered from Cipher's work on him. They were…really thorough with him and the other beasts. It's taken a long time for him to feel comfortable enough to venture away from Agate Village. Suicune _still_ won't leave Celebi's Shrine."

Cynthia's eyes narrowed. "I see."

Entei rumbled again, like the sound of a dormant volcano, but the beast just looked tired. Rui shot Ash an inviting smile as she approached the combatants and he hesitantly followed.

Cynthia glanced at the others as they came closer. "We'll camp together tonight. Entei needs to recover and I would like to speak with Wes for a while, if that's alright with everyone."

Wes didn't look surprised. He looked up at Rui as he worked on Entei's paw and she smiled, bobbing her head in agreement. He cracked a slight smile in response and returned to his work.

Ash, still speechless, just watched.

* * *

Sometime later, when they'd all settled, the travelers gathered around a campfire Pyro had started (Entei apparently was still learning the value of restraint). Rui handed out a couple of tongs and happily pulled out some marshmallows, chocolate, and crackers. Ash accepted the offered tool with bemusement.

Cynthia had recalled all of her Pokemon save Garchomp and Glaceon. Ash's team was still out and about, huddled close to their trainer with the exception of Pyro and Eevee. Eevee, of course, was currently being groomed by Glaceon while she listened to Umbreon's chitters.

Pyro was close to Garchomp, but seemed to be slowly mustering up the courage to get closer to Entei, who was many times his size and resting his wounded paw.

Wes unhooked another Ultra Ball from his belt and everyone stilled as another great beast emerged, one with a mane of thunderclouds and a whipping tail like constrained lightning. Ash would've recognized the signature saber-teeth of the creature from any book detailing the mighty feline—Raikou, the Beast of Thunder.

Raikou was a lot more relaxed than Entei had been. Upon emerging, the enormous electric-type stalked over to Rui and growled playfully until she scratched behind its ears and planted a friendly kiss on its head. Raikou rumbled a friendly greeting to Entei, (who just grunted) got a lick from Umbreon before the dark-type returned to Eevee and Glaceon, and plopped down its head in Wes' lap.

Wes snorted and stroked the beast's fur. "Hey, boy."

Raikou yawned, exposing eight-inch fangs capable of punching through steel.

Cynthia studied the second beast with an appraising eye. "I take it you've had more success with him."

"Yeah," Wes admitted. "Entei was the first beast I snagged from Cipher, but Raikou was the easiest to work with. Well, no Shadow Pokemon is ever _easy_ to work with, but you get the point, right?"

Something clicked for Ash and he stared at Wes with new understanding. "Wait, that guy who started taking down Cipher's top agents from the inside—that was you?"

"Damn right," Wes shrugged. "I was part of an organization called Snagem from the time I was little. I grew up and wanted more, so I stole a Snagging device and started taking all of Cipher's Shadow Pokemon for myself."

"Only once I agreed to help," Rui reminded him.

"True. Wouldn't have gotten anywhere without ya."

"They're Shadow Pokemon?" Ash asked, frowning.

"Not anymore," Wes grunted as Raikou tried to roll and push him onto his back, but the young man set a hand against the beast's shoulder and pushed back. "Ugh, get _off,_ you lazy cat. They've been purified. It takes a lot of work to undo what Cipher did to their Shadow Pokemon. It's taken me _years_ to get all the ones I snagged back to any sort of stable health, but we got them there. Entei only recently felt well enough to leave Agate Village, where we purified most of the Shadow Pokemon. The third beast I took from Cipher, Suicune, was purified a few months ago, but she's still not feeling great."

"My grandpa takes care of the purified Pokemon who aren't ready to travel around," Rui explained. "Suicune loves him and my grandma, but I think she's tired of fighting."

"Most purified Pokemon are," Wes agreed quietly, swatting away Raikou as the beast licked the side of his face and pulled up some of Wes' hair into a cowlick. Rui giggled and the beast left his master to pad over to her instead for some more affection. Entei watched with exasperation glowing in his eyes.

Cynthia smiled a bit. "I've heard a lot about your work, but this is the first time I've gotten to really meet purified Shadow Pokemon. They seem to be doing well."

"Raikou is a good example of purification done right," Wes jerked his thumb after the beast, who was currently mauling a giggling Rui's face with its tongue. "Entei's taken to it pretty well, I think. Others…not so much."

"Such as…?"

"Let's just say my Tyranitar was never going to be… _friendly_ even before he was made into a Shadow Pokemon."

Cynthia winced. "I see."

Ash opened his mouth to ask another question, but stilled when he became the focus of Raikou's attention. The Beast of Thunder studied him curiously and released Rui to stalk over. Its enormous frame dwarfed Ash and his team, casting a menacing shadow as it walked on disturbingly silent feet.

Sobek let out a growl when Raikou stepped too close for his liking and the great feline paused, studying the crocodilian with interest. Ash wondered if the beast had ever seen a Krokorok before. The rest of Ash's team was wary as Raikou stretched his head as close as he could manage to catch a whiff of Ash's scent.

"He doesn't mean any harm," Rui assured them. "Raikou was kept in a lab for a long time. He's curious about everything, but he won't hurt you."

Ash believed her, but every instinct he had fought the knowledge, telling him to keep away from the creature whose fangs were longer than his body was deep. He quietly ordered Sobek to stand down and mustered enough courage to lift a hand slowly, offering it to Raikou for inspection.

The beast immediately sniffed at his fingers, the wet, warm nose prodding his digits. Raikou's eyes flitted up from his hand to Ash's eyes, meeting them without fear. The beast blinked slowly, intelligent red eyes glowing in the firelight. He took one step closer, careful not to tread on Sobek (who refused to move despite the enormous feline looming over him) and brushed his snout against Ash's hat.

Ash went very still as Raikou's snout nudged at his hat ponderously. His hand had been left halfway up and he cautiously lifted it to run his fingers through the beast's thin fur. Raikou let out a deep rumble from within his chest and Ash couldn't help but laugh in wonder when he realized the beast was _purring_.

"Told you," Rui grinned. "He's a big house cat."

"Didn't he crush your bed?" Wes asked dryly as he mercilessly shoved a marshmallow into the fire.

"He means no harm," she waved the comment off.

Pikachu had been on the ground, intending to steal a s'more, but found his interest taken up by the huge electric-type that had joined them. He leapt onto Ash's shoulder and Raikou chuffed, pulling back a bit to inspect the tiny mouse.

Ever the bold one, Pikachu leapt from Ash's shoulder onto Raikou's back. To his credit, the beast took it in stride and watched as Pikachu nestled himself on the base of his mane and began sparking at the cheeks. Raikou rumbled back and plopped down, (barely avoiding crushing Sobek, who snapped in annoyance) sparking in response. Pikachu chittered and the two electric-types began to commune with that unique method known to all electric species.

A bit more relaxed now, Ash looked up at Wes. "Rui said you're competing in the Indigo League?"

"Yep," he nodded. "I want to set up an official League in Orre to keep scum like Cipher from getting power again. Problem is, we're isolated and the whole region is a mess, so I have to do things…legally. Which takes forever. Best way to go about that is to make my position and power as the "future Champion of Orre" cemented by the neighboring League. So, gotta register with the Indigo League, show I can play by the rules, blah, blah, blah."

"It really takes that long? Doesn't Orre need the help sooner than later?"

"It does, but the International Leagues can't risk a dictator or someone with malicious intent rising to power again," Cynthia pointed out, to which Wes gestured to her in agreement. "The world only just recovered from the Cipher Wars, and the aftereffects are going to be felt for a long time, yet. They can't afford to rush putting someone in power."

"Besides, we're trying to find trainers good enough to establish an Elite Four in Orre, not just a Champion," Wes continued, eating his blackened s'more while Rui watched with a little disgust. "Battlus is worth hitting up, but Rui's grandfather retired and well…that's really all I've got. Everyone else is too weak or too shady. It's a mess."

Unwilling to linger for too long on that heavy subject, Ash grinned a challenge at Wes. "I'll be competing in the League, too. Think we could have a battle in the morning?"

Wes gauged him lazily. "How many badges do you have?"

"Three. Brock, Misty, and Surge."

"Surge, huh?" Wes cocked his head, a little more interested now. "Mmm…beat Koga or Sabrina. If we run into each other again before the League—if you make it there—I'll let you get crushed."

Ash scowled. "We might surprise you."

Pyro growled agreement, but Wes only snorted. "I've faced scarier foes than some kid's half-grown team. We'd make mincemeat of you right now. I'm betting you won't stand a chance even if you make it to the League."

"I'll take that bet."

Rui smiled, amused at their challenge. "Enough of that. Wes, remember that time in Pyrite when we…"

Ash let the fire in his belly die down enough to focus on Rui's story, but his eyes constantly darted to the pair of massive beasts dozing by the fire, and he knew then that these legends would be the greatest hurdle for his team to conquer.

And looking around, his team knew it, too.

* * *

He and Cynthia had parted from Wes and Rui early that morning. With a few words of farewell, (and a friendly lick from Raikou) the Orreans were off to Lavender, leaving their temporary companions.

Ash had passed through Saffron City once before, but the massive city was still just as easy to get lost in as it was before. Fortunately, Cynthia seemed to know where she was going and led him right to the Saffron gym. He stared at the building with curious eyes. This was the residing place of Sabrina, one of Kanto's most powerful Gym Leaders.

He followed Cynthia into the Gym and saw a few people wearing robes of sorts, apparently the standard for gym trainers. Ash's assumption was confirmed when he noticed that several of them were working with psychic Pokemon. He could see Abra, Kadabra, Slowpoke, Drowzee, and other psychic-types that he'd never seen before.

They made their way to a room in the back that appeared empty. Ash looked around, confused as to why they were there. Weren't they meeting Sabrina?

"You are."

He jumped and spun around to find a woman standing directly behind him. She looked down at Ash with glowing, pinkish-red eyes, though they seemed warm rather than creepy. Short dark hair stopped just past her shoulders, flowing slightly despite there not being any wind in the building.

Cynthia smiled at her. "Hello, Sabrina. I'm assuming you know who this is?"

"Ash Ketchum," she stated, giving Ash another jolt of surprise. Sabrina's eyes took on a curious light. "You've been traveling for three months now. You recently met the Purifier and his Beasts, and will be making your way to Celadon City shortly after this meeting in order to challenge Erika."

Ash gaped at her. So, the rumors of Sabrina possessing psychic abilities were true. He hadn't expected her to be able to discern that much information from simply meeting him, but then what did he know about psychics?

She seemed amused by his disbelief. "I learn many things upon meeting people. My powers allow me to see the past, present, and future to an extent. The bond I have with my Pokemon augments this even further."

Cynthia stepped forward. "I presume you know why I am here?"

"I do. However, I regret to inform you that the Team Rocket Admins you apprehended, Ariana and Proton, have already escaped containment."

"What!" Ash exclaimed.

Sabrina nodded gravely. "They were broken out of prison six hours ago and have since evaded recapture. It seems Team Rocket required them badly enough to attempt a breakout. The other henchmen detained at Mt. Moon and Pokemon Tower were not freed."

"We'll have to hunt them down again," Cynthia murmured with a frown. She looked at Ash. "I'm afraid this is where we must part. I have to discuss League business with Sabrina and unfortunately that includes information I'm not allowed to disclose to you."

He felt a little put-out by that, but there was nothing to do about it. Ash was just another trainer. The Rockets were for the elites who kept Kanto and Johto in order to handle. He simply wasn't privy to the secrets that Gym Leaders and Elite Four-Class trainers possessed.

Sabrina glanced at Ash again. "Be careful, Ash Ketchum. There are dangerous times ahead for all of us. Some sooner than others."

Ash didn't know how else to react aside from nod. Seeing as he was no longer privy to their conversation, the young trainer turned and left the gym.

Once he was outside, Ash took a moment to debate his next move. The obvious next step was to go to Celadon City and battle Erika, but he really wanted to get some extra training in as well. Meeting Wes and his beasts had set a fire burning in his belly.

He wanted to spend some more time with his team—particularly Eevee and Spectre. Eevee because they had been getting along very well since the little normal-type met Cynthia's Glaceon and Wes' Umbreon, and Spectre because Ash simply didn't _know_ much about his new ghost.

He frowned to himself thoughtfully. Ash didn't _know_ why Spectre had followed him all the way from Lavender Town and sought to be captured by him. The Duskull was an enigma that Ash really wanted to understand better—they would be working together, after all. If Spectre was to become a skilled fighter in his team, then Ash needed to get to know him intimately. Creating a strong bond with his new team mate would help him to understand what made Spectre tick and allow Ash to decide the best way to train him.

Thinking about it a little more, he decided that extra training would be completely necessary. If Ash was going to use Spectre in his battle against Erika, (and perhaps even Eevee if he was lucky) then he needed more than understanding how the Duskull fought. He needed to whip him into shape. Ash didn't even know if Spectre had battled before. He'd incapacitated Team Rocket grunts easily enough, but how would he do against an enemy that would actively dodge and fight back?

Ash pulled out his PokeNav and looked over Route Seven. It was a short route—shorter than the one they'd taken to get to Saffron, for sure. He'd probably only spend a couple of days on it before reaching Celadon, but each day was an extra one he could spend training his team for the battle with Erika.

He nodded to himself and set Pikachu and Eevee loose from their Poke Balls. The pair of small Pokemon chittered at him in greeting, then followed their trainer as Ash led the way towards Route Seven and Celadon City. They had work to do and a Gym Leader to fight.

* * *

That evening, he sent his team out for their usual training session. Ash had already set up camp for the night, so now it was time to make sure all of his Pokemon got in a good workout. That always served to tire them out and assure that they would sleep well.

Before releasing them for training, Ash decided to give Douse the Scald TM he'd gotten from Misty. He'd been fortunate enough to receive a TM Case from his mother before he set off on his journey. They were useful tools to trainers and made any TMs usable—without the case, there was no way to apply the move to any of his Pokemon. Essentially, he'd be carrying around a useless disc.

Scald was currently the only TM he had in the case, but that was fine with him. He would pick up more TMs in Celadon City, though whether he would do so before or after fighting Erika was something he hadn't yet made his mind up about. The great thing about TMs was that they could be purchased for either one-use or multiple uses. The multiple-use ones cost a fair bit more, but they were worth it for the trainers who could purchase them. Fortunately, it seemed Misty had given him a Scald TM with multiple uses.

Ash took out the TM Case from his bag and placed Douse's shrunken Poke Ball in a slot on the top of the device. A small screen next to the slot displayed the Scald TM as the only move available and Ash tapped it quickly. He watched as Douse's Poke Ball glowed blue for a few moments, then the tiny screen flashed green and said COMPLETE. Ash took Douse's Poke Ball out of the machine and put in back in his bag. Now he had to see if it worked correctly.

He released his team and got their attention quickly.

"Alright, you know that we're making our way to Celadon City," Ash began. "Erika is the Gym Leader there. All I know is that she uses grass-type Pokemon. Pyro, that means you're going to be the main player for this fight."

Pyro thrashed his tail and spat a small burst of fire into the air, baring sharp fangs in a grin of delight. Ash realized that his starter had never actually been the main fighter of one of their gym battles—Brock and Misty had held huge advantages over him and Sobek had been the star of their fight against Lt. Surge. He'd fought the former Gym Leaders' weaker Pokemon just to even things out and cleaned up Surge's Raichu right after it had battled Pikachu and Douse, but this would really be Pyro's time to shine, his chance to dominate the gym opponents.

"I don't know how many Pokemon Erika is going to use, but chances are she'll probably use a standard team of three. So I want Pyro, Eevee, and Spectre to battle this time."

That earned him the tilts of several heads. Ash could only imagine what they were thinking about his decision. Considering that every single fight he'd had thus far consisted of using Pyro, Pikachu, Sobek, and Douse, his lineup for this Gym Battle meant he would only be using one of his primary battlers. Ash had never fought with Eevee before and he didn't even know how strong Spectre was, yet.

There were other complications as well.

Eevee was glaring at him, probably because she was not fond of the idea that Ash had decided to use her in battle. His relationship with the normal-type was still on shaky ground, but Ash was hoping that their travels together and the recent bonding thanks to Glaceon and Umbreon would make her a bit more compliant.

"Training tonight is going to be busy. Pyro and Douse, you two are working on techniques today. I want Mega Punch mastered before we fight Erika, Pyro. Douse, I'll be with you in a moment to try out Scald. Pikachu, you're sparring with Sobek. Practice Electro Ball and work on your aim while you're at it. Sobek, try to dodge everything he throws at you."

His main fighters sounded their agreements and headed off a short distance away from the camp to begin their training. Ash watched as Pikachu wound up an Electro Ball and hurled it at Sobek, only for the croc to dive underground and disappear. He then turned to Eevee and Spectre, inwardly sighing when he saw the normal-type looking away pointedly.

"Eevee, please," Ash tried. "Could you try training with me? If you really don't want to fight in the gym battle, that's okay, just work with me a little."

She looked at him stiffly and apparently resigned herself to whatever he had in store, because her eyes rolled and she nodded. Ash had a feeling that any training with Eevee would only last until she got tired of putting up with him. That didn't raise his confidence about how well this would go, but at least she was cooperating thus far.

Plus Spectre looked excited about training and that made him feel better.

"Alright, I haven't gotten to really see what either of you can do, so let's see your moves," Ash began. He needed an idea of what they were capable of before deciding on how to start their training. "Eevee, let's start with you."

She rolled her eyes again, but listened without complaint. Ash considered her move pool for a moment before starting out simple. "Alright. Let's start with…"

They ran through Eevee's moves fairly quickly. She didn't have a huge variety of attacks, but she was _good_ at using each one of them. She had a particularly vicious Bite and Ash was always impressed by one of her Shadow Balls. He realized with some anger that she'd probably gotten good at using them to defend herself from whatever horrors she'd been put through at the Pokemon mill Officer Jenny had taken her from.

As they practiced each move, Ash saw Eevee becoming a little more open to the idea of training. It made him grow more hopeful—maybe she was warming up to him.

"That's enough," he told Eevee after she fired a Swift into a tree and left it scarred. The small normal-type paused and looked at him. Ash smiled at her proudly. "That was great, Eevee. I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of one of your attacks."

She almost— _almost_ —smirked and sat down to groom her somewhat ruffled fur while Ash gave Spectre his turn. The Duskull was watching him expectantly.

"Alright Spectre, let's get started," Ash began slowly. He had to pull out the Pokedex again to remind himself what moves the ghost could use. Spectre was still a big unknown for him, and now was the time to change that. "Show me Protect."

The Duskull's single red eye flashed and then a moment later, a circular green shield erected itself in front of his body. It easily covered him and as could see from the steady glow that it was something Spectre was good at. He nodded. That was one move down.

"Right. Next use…"

Testing out Spectre's moves went by even faster than Eevee's. He didn't want to test out Confuse Ray in front of the others in case it misfired and made them hurt themselves while training. Ash knew that his Disable was just fine—he'd seen how easily Spectre had immobilized the Team Rocket grunts and had full confidence in the ghost's ability to use it well. All he had after that was Astonish and Shadow Sneak, both of which were relatively simple moves.

He frowned. He _really_ needed to expand Spectre's move pool. Astonish and Shadow Sneak were great for catching the opponent off-guard, but they had very limited power and wouldn't be nearly enough to allow the Duskull to actually win any battles. Suddenly, Ash got an idea that might let him kill two birds with one stone.

"Hey, Eevee?" Eevee paused in her grooming and looked back up at Ash. "Would you mind teaching Spectre how to use Shadow Ball?"

Eevee glanced from Ash to the ghost and shrugged. He couldn't say she was eager, but she was willing at least. "Okay, get started on that and see how you do. I have to go check on the others, but I'll be back soon."

Spectre nodded and Eevee shrugged again. Ash figured that was as good as he was going to get from the normal-type, so he turned and made his way towards the rest of his team.

* * *

"Alright, Douse, do you think you can use Scald?" Ash asked the water-type. Douse bounced up and nodded. Ash couldn't help but smile at the Poliwhirl's enthusiasm. "Show me what you've got."

He glanced around and spotted a small boulder not far away. "Okay, use Scald on that rock."

Douse faced the boulder and immediately unleashed a blast of steaming hot water, which hit his target perfectly. Ash grinned. There was no question about accuracy, and that was probably due to Scald being so similar to Water Gun—that is, a Water Gun with a temperature hot enough to boil and burn flesh.

"Great job, Douse!" Ash exclaimed. "That was excellent!"

Douse beat a fist against his round body and gurgled cheerily. Ash was pretty sure he had Scald down no question, which he was grateful for. Usually, TMs required a fair bit of practice to master them because they only transferred the information regarding how to use the moves. Fortunately, Scald was a relatively simple move for a water-type to learn—all it really involved was a change in the temperature of water. The actual use of the attack was executed in a manner practically identical to Water Gun, which Douse had mastered prior to Ash capturing him.

Ash was proud of Douse and impressed by how quickly he'd adapted to the new move. He decided to get a little ambitious. "Douse, do you think we can start working on Hydro Pump?"

The gleam in the Poliwhirl's eyes said all that Ash needed to know. Douse looked more than ready to learn the incredibly powerful water-type move. Ash grinned and pulled his Pokedex out, searching for a description of Hydro Pump to instruct Douse with.

"Here it is," Ash said excitedly. "Okay…Hydro Pump is like Water Gun, but at the next level. It's a huge blast of high-pressure water. Once it's mastered, Hydro Pump can punch through steel plates. So…maybe for starters, we should work on how much water you can shoot."

Douse bounced again and faced the same rock he had shot with Scald, which was still steaming a bit. He reared his body back and then unleashed a huge blast of water. Ash watched as the mass of liquid positively drenched everything in sight, but it was so widespread that all it really did was water the plant life.

He stared at the soaked ground and looked at Douse, who seemed tired already. Ash hadn't realized how much energy just attempting a single Hydro Pump would take from his friend. Still, the Poliwhirl looked like he could have another go. "Again."

Douse nodded and reared back to repeat the attack. He did so four more times until Douse sat down hard and simply couldn't continue the training.

Ash bit his lip as he surveyed the soaking ground. He had thought that Hydro Pump would be as easy to learn as Scald, but this quickly changed his mind about that. Douse could fire Water Guns all day long, but Hydro Pump needed so much more water and raw power that even five attempts like this basically drained Douse of all his strength.

"Take a break, buddy," Ash told Douse as he rubbed the Poliwhirl's moist skin atop his head. "Try to get some of your energy back and then have another go at it."

Douse nodded and then collapsed onto his back, round body heaving from the strain. Ash frowned. It looked like Hydro Pump was going to take a lot of work.

* * *

"How's it coming, Pyro?" Ash asked his starter.

Pyro spat a gout of flame into the air and growled excitedly. He clenched one of his hands into a fist and Ash grinned when it began to glow white. It looked like Pyro had finally gotten Mega Punch down after weeks of practicing with Douse.

"Let's see what you can do with that," Ash exclaimed eagerly. He looked at a nearby tree that appeared to be dead and pointed at it. "Pyro, Mega Punch."

The Charmeleon glared at the tree like it was an affront to his existence and snarled, then lunged at it with a burst of speed. He curled his glowing fist back and smashed it into the hard wood.

Ash blinked as splinters flew through the air. There was a huge groan of creaking wood, then the tree fell over with a mighty crash. His jaw fell open slightly and the rest of his training Pokemon stopped what they were doing to stare at the destruction. He knew that Mega Punch was a strong move after watching Douse use it countless times, but he hadn't expected Pyro to do _that_ with a single hit.

"Pyro, that was awesome!"

The Charmeleon let out a roar of victory and breathed more intense flames into the air. Ash grinned at the sight. He had really been debating which of his Pokemon was the strongest, but there was no question after that display. Barring Sobek when his Moxie was activated, Pyro held more raw power than any other member of his team.

He watched Pyro's tail flame flare and blinked at the intense white core in the fire. Ash knew that Pyro would take a good while longer to evolve, but seeing the flame on his tail getting stronger and hotter was a sign that Pyro had progressed far beyond where he had been when he first evolved from Charmander. His success with Mega Punch and improvement on Dragon Rush were testaments to that.

Ash grinned widely. He couldn't wait for Pyro to evolve into one of the infamous Charizard he'd seen on TV. They were notorious for their fiery tempers and lust for battle, not to mention they were relentless fighters—it simply wasn't in their nature to hold back against an enemy. Champion Lance's Charizard was the pinnacle of their breed as far as Ash knew, capable of defeating even dragon-types with its monstrous strength. Maybe one day Pyro would reach that level of power as well.

But that was a dream for the future. Ash needed to focus on the present. He smiled at his starter and decided to return him to training. "Pyro, start working on Dragon Rush again. Keep up the exercises Garchomp had you doing and…"

* * *

Ash returned to Eevee and Spectre after giving Pyro his next set of instructions. He'd checked in on Pikachu and Sobek, but there was really nothing else he could do with them at the moment. Their training was more about aim and evasion—all he could really do was tell them to keep working hard.

"I'm back," Ash said as he approached the pair of small Pokemon.

Spectre floated over and tapped his forehead, which Ash mimicked by touching the ghost's skull mask. He glanced at Eevee and saw that she was grooming herself again, although she did look a little tired.

"Eevee, how'd it go?"

Eevee looked at him pointedly and jerked her head at Spectre before returning to grooming herself. Ash frowned at that. Maybe she was feeling less cooperative now that she was tired. Still, she'd worked hard so he couldn't complain. He'd give her the break she wanted.

Instead, he turned to Spectre. "Did you figure it out, buddy?"

Spectre spun his floating body sideways and made a noise that Ash thought was somewhat confused. He glanced at the tree they'd been using for target practice and pointed at it. "Let's try it out. Use Shadow Ball."

Spectre floated over and pushed his wispy limbs in front of his body. Ash smiled as a small, black sphere of ghostly energy was formed, though it was obviously much weaker than Eevee's Shadow Ball. The Shadow Ball was launched and seemed to be heading in the right direction, but halfway there it broke up and disappeared.

The Duskull sagged and his single red eye leered at the spot where his attack had vanished with annoyance. Ash smirked slightly at the expression and looked back at the tree. "Again."

* * *

Ash ran into Paul just before he entered Celadon.

He was relieved by how close the city was, mostly because after three days of travel, he was well and truly ready to hit the hay in a good bed at the Pokemon Center. It was almost evening and Ash wanted nothing more than to give his team to Nurse Joy for a checkup and pass out for the night. They'd battled more trainers on the way here than he cared to count and trained relentlessly whenever they camped.

He actually would have preferred to avoid a battle since they were so close to the city, but when Ash caught sight of Paul training in a clearing just a quarter mile away from Celadon, he had to go meet the other trainer. Ash called to get his attention, but that was unnecessary—Paul's Grotle was facing Ash and grunted at his trainer.

Paul turned and arched an eyebrow in surprise. "I didn't expect to see you here."

"I was actually just about to get into Celadon," Ash told him as he walked over. "Then I saw you training. Sorry if I interrupted you, but I wanted to see how much stronger you'd gotten."

Grotle made a deep growling sound. His rival smirked. "A fight then, is it?"

Pikachu sniggered and Ash grinned right back. "If you think you're up to it."

"Three on three, same conditions as last time," Paul declared immediately.

Ash nodded and stepped back a few paces. Once they were each a good distance apart, he scratched Pikachu's ears and jerked his thumb towards the field. "Get in there, buddy."

Pikachu leapt onto the ground and sparks flew from his cheek pouches while the mouse sniggered.

"Nidorino, standby for battle," Paul muttered as he took out a Poke Ball and threw it. From within the confines of the capture device came a large, pink Pokemon with a large horn and many sharp spikes all over its back. Ash eyed it curiously. He'd seen Gary's Nidorina before, but Nidorino was a new one for him.

"Avoid the horn and those spikes," he told Pikachu slowly as he assessed the danger. "If you have to get in close, stay on its flanks."

Pikachu's ears flicked to acknowledge that he'd heard Ash, then the battle began.

"Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded. Pikachu's cheeks sparked again, then he unleashed a large electric shock which cracked towards Nidorino. The attack was made with such speed that the other, slower Pokemon was unable to avoid it and took the Thunderbolt head-on. Nidorino shook the pain away and growled angrily, spines flexing and dripping with toxins as he glared at Pikachu.

Paul didn't seem fazed by the damage. "Poison Sting. When it gets close, Focus Jab."

Nidorino's huge ears twitched as his mouth opened. The poison-type spat a barrage of poisonous quills at his opponent, seeking to put his lethal venom to good use. Pikachu leapt aside from the first series of needles and continued to run in order to avoid being hit, but Nidorino's aim was good. It was strafing the Poison Sting so that it might eventually hit Pikachu.

Ash wasn't about to let that happen. "Agility! Get on its flank and wind up an Electro Ball!"

Pikachu slipped into Agility with a blur of speed, causing Paul's eyes to widen fractionally. He apparently hadn't anticipated that kind of speed, but his surprise was quickly dismissed. "Protect!"

As Pikachu jumped into the air and charged a sphere of electrical energy around his tail, Nidorino spun to face the mouse and erected a green, circular shield in front of him. Ash frowned at that. It looked like Paul had gotten his hands on TMs. That meant his other Pokemon probably had some tricks up their sleeves to give him trouble.

Ash watched as Pikachu built up Electro Ball and winced at how rough it looked. Pikachu was still having trouble concentrating electricity into finite amounts. They really needed to work on that. Not that it mattered—once the Electro Ball was hurled from Pikachu's tail, it crashed uselessly against Nidorino's Protect and fizzled out.

Paul took advantage of the fact that Pikachu was still airborne immediately. "Focus Jab."

Nidorino tensed suddenly and Ash saw energy glowing at the horn. He recognized the technique as Focus Energy. It was a relatively simple move—the Pokemon simply concentrated its power on one part of its body in order to deliver a particularly powerful attack. Some people made the mistake of assuming that it was a way for the Pokemon to focus better in combat, but that was just instinct for almost every species.

Paul knew better. The other trainer had evidently done his homework regarding his team and knew the best ways for them to fight.

Nidorino lunged at Pikachu and struck the electric mouse directly in the center of his body just inches from the ground, making Ash wince as Pikachu was sent flying in the opposite direction with a squeal of pain. He saw blood flowing from where the point of the horn had stabbed at the mouse, but he doubted it was a deep wound given that Pikachu managed to recover a few seconds after hitting the ground. If Nidorino had been aiming to kill, Pikachu would not have risen from such a clean hit. That being said, it was more than likely that the poison-type's venomous spike had delivered its toxins into Pikachu's body. Now they were on a time limit.

Ash made a quick mental note to avoid presenting Nidorino with another opening like that and snapped his next orders. "Thunder Wave! Circle it with Agility and use Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu fired a small wave of electricity at Nidorino in an effort to paralyze it, but the poison-type formed a quick Protect to absorb the status afflicting-technique harmlessly. Undeterred by the failure, Pikachu blurred around his opponent and unleashed a furious Thunderbolt the second that Protect faded. Nidorino roared angrily as the bolt crashed into the left side of his body. He had definitely felt that. Despite the poison-type's tough skin, Ash knew that a strong enough shock would hurt Nidorino. Paul had trained it well, but there was no way to make it completely impervious to electric attacks until it evolved.

Apparently, Paul recognized this because he immediately went back on the offensive. "Finish it off with Venoshock."

Nidorino's mouth opened and it spat a nasty, glowing green liquid at Pikachu. Ash didn't have to tell the mouse to avoid it. He didn't know anything about that particular move, but he seriously doubted that any attack with a name like Venoshock would be harmless. He would have to keep Pikachu at a distance and hammer their opponent with Thunderbolts.

Unfortunately, that plan was useless given that Pikachu was evidently getting weaker and weaker as Nidorino's potent venom worked its way through his body. Ash would have to go for broke.

"Volt Tackle!"

Paul's eyes narrowed, but he didn't react as Pikachu cloaked himself in a veil of lightning, then blitzed at Nidorino. Ash thought for a moment that the other trainer simply couldn't think of a way to react until he barked. "Protect!"

Pikachu smashed into the green barrier with such force that he was knocked out instantly upon impact—as though he'd run head-on into a brick wall. Ash recalled Pikachu with a dumbfounded expression. It took him a second to fully recognize what it was Paul had done, which was to actually turn Protect into a move that could inflict damage. _Protect_ of all things. It was literally the prime example of a purely defensive move and Paul had flipped the whole technique around.

Despite the loss, Ash had to give him credit—that was brilliant.

Nidorino snorted as Paul returned him. The boy seemed unaffected by his first victory and released his second Pokemon. "Cubone, standby for battle."

The next Pokemon that appeared was another first for Ash. Cubone was a small, reptilian creature with a large skull covering its face. No one really knew what lay beneath the mask, but every Cubone had one. It also had a small bone club that was its primary method of attack. Ash contemplated his next move.

He sent out Pyro. The Charmeleon thrashed his tail aggressively and roared at his smaller opponent, who seemed a little wary of the flame lizard.

Paul's eyes gleamed with what might have been a flicker of excitement. "Bone Club."

Cubone brandished its weapon and started to run at Pyro, who snarled a challenge. Ash decided that keeping the small creature at a distance would probably nullify most of its attacks and keep Pyro from taking any super-effective damage. "Use Flamethrower. Keep it away from you."

Pyro unleashed a blast of fire, which Cubone just barely dodged. The Charmeleon followed his target with the flame still burning, intent on hitting the charging ground-type. Cubone continued to run, but it was no longer getting closer to Pyro as avoiding the flames became a priority.

"Rock Tomb!" Paul suddenly ordered. "Trap it and use Bone Rush!"

Cubone suddenly smashed its club into the ground and Ash felt the earth waver slightly. A moment later, Pyro roared with surprise as a circle of rocks erupted from the ground around him and pinned him with painful force. Cubone's club glowed after its opponent was trapped and lunged again.

"Metal Claw!" Ash said frantically. "Get out of there!"

Pyro growled and strained to move enough to execute his trainer's orders. Just as Cubone leaped up to take a swing at the fire-type's head, Pyro managed to dig metallic claws into the rocks and slashed them away. Cubone lashed out with Bone Rush, but its now freed target ducked under the swing, causing the attacker to overextend awkwardly in the air.

Ash grinned wildly and seized his chance. "Flamethrower!"

Cubone was consumed in the blast of fire that Pyro unleashed, the fire-type roaring his fury at the other Pokemon. The ground-type was propelled several meters away and hit the ground harshly. It struggled to get back up, but Pyro spat another gout of flame to keep it down.

"Finish it! Mega Punch!" He commanded, blood pumping with adrenaline.

Pyro clenched his fist and lunged at Cubone while the weakened ground-type was still down. It had just enough time to look up as Pyro's glowing fist crashed into its small body and sent it flying in the opposite direction. Cubone sailed past its trainer before it hit the ground, this time without the strength to get up.

Paul recalled it without a word and looked back at Pyro, who spat a fireball into the air in victory. The boy smirked despite his loss. "I see your Charmeleon is as powerful as ever."

"He's gotten a lot stronger, that's for sure," Ash agreed. Pyro stalked over and made a light vibration in his throat as Ash scratched the fire-type's chin. He recalled his starter a moment later and grabbed his third Poke Ball.

Douse appeared and cracked his knuckles eagerly, always ready for a good fight. Paul considered the water-type for a moment and Ash frowned when a ghost of a smile touched the other boy's face.

His eyes widened at the Tentacruel that appeared on the field, supporting its soft body on dozens of powerful tentacles. Ash had seen Tentacool floating in the water along the coast, but he'd never seen its notoriously aggressive evolved form. They were made almost entirely of water and never stopped growing. Once they reached about twenty feet long, which was considered quite large by the standards of their species, they would descend into the abyss of the ocean and live out the rest of their long lives in the blackness. Ash had heard that the biggest Tentacruel ever recorded had tentacles that were something like forty feet long, big enough to combat even something as huge as a Gyarados. The whole beast itself had been a gargantuan sixty feet.

From the size of this one, Ash guessed it had only recently evolved, but that didn't mean it was weak. The creature was still almost six feet tall and practically reeked aggression. He really had no idea how to handle this Pokemon. He'd fought Tentacool before, but they were considerably weaker and had only two tentacles to fight with. This was far, far different.

He decided to start the fight at a distance. "Mud Shot. Stay away from it and avoid the tentacles at all costs. It'll probably try to poison you."

Douse nodded and immediately spat a blast of mud at Tentacruel. Paul did nothing as the jellyfish retaliated with a blast of water that dissolved the oncoming attack with ease. Tentacruel then raised a few of its tentacles and fired shots of glowing violet acid.

"Dodge it!" Ash commanded. "Keep using Mud Shot."

Douse followed his orders quickly. The Poliwhirl began to leap away from each shot of acid and spat mud whenever he could, but each attempt was thwarted by Tentacruel shooting water to counter the Mud Shots. Ash chewed his lip as the fight came to a stalemate, trying to think of some way to overcome the creature facing them.

Paul beat him to the punch. "Get in close and use Wrap."

Tentacruel suddenly bent its tentacles into a crouch, then pushed off with incredible force. Ash's eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected burst of speed, which caught both himself and Douse completely off-guard. Before he could react, the jellyfish had Douse wrapped tightly in its tentacles, immobilizing him completely.

"Acid Spray," Paul ordered. "Then smash it."

Tentacruel made a deep gurgling sound and drenched Douse in the violet acid it had been firing unsuccessfully beforehand. Douse struggled frantically to escape, but he was no match for the countless tentacles immobilizing him. Ash could only watch helplessly. There was no way Douse could get away from such an opponent.

The jellyfish raised its tentacles and crushed Douse into the ground. Ash thought that was it, but the Poliwhirl stubbornly pushed himself back onto his feet, glaring at the Tentacruel that was beating him as if he were nothing but a tiny Poliwag.

Paul didn't have to give Tentacruel any further orders because it was evidently annoyed by its opponent surviving. Ash saw about a dozen of its tentacles glow and stab forward at Douse with Poison Jab, but he recalled his Pokemon before they could impact. The venomous move hit the ground and killed the grass where it touched instantly, leaving a large patch of dead plant life where Douse had been. Tentacruel retracted its tentacles and leered at Ash for taking away its prey, but it seemed satisfied with its victory.

Ash watched as Paul recalled Tentacruel. The other boy didn't even look _happy_ that he'd won.

"So the score is 1-1," Paul said finally. "Make sure you're stronger next time. Tentacruel isn't even my most powerful Pokemon."

Ash nodded, clenching his fists. He wasn't _really_ angry from the loss, but it was an odd feeling that he didn't experience often or especially liked. He'd only lost a few times beforehand, and those losses were to trainers that had been training a lot longer than he had. Paul had gotten much stronger. The fights against Nidorino and Cubone had been pretty similar to their first battle, but Tentacruel's easy victory had taken him by surprise. And if Tentacruel wasn't even Paul's strongest Pokemon…

He mentally checked himself. He would simply have to get stronger. A lot stronger, if Paul was to be believed and the monster of a Tentacruel wasn't the greatest threat on his team. Ash would put money on his strongest being Grotle or maybe Elekid if it had evolved.

Besides, even those Pokemon were nothing to Wes' Entei and Raikou.

"We'll be stronger next time," Ash responded. "I have to give you credit, I didn't expect Tentacruel to be that strong."

Paul smirked. "I captured her in Vermillion and she evolved before we challenged the Celadon Gym. She turned out to be worth raising—she defeated two of Erika's Pokemon."

"I bet she did. No one's beaten Douse that easily since Lt. Surge's Raichu."

"That Raichu was a monster, wasn't it?" Paul admitted. "We defeated it, though."

Ash blinked. "You got the Thunder Badge, too?"

"Yeah. Just a couple of weeks ago. I didn't get into Vermillion until then because I took a detour through the Rock Tunnel past Cerulean City," he explained. "That's where I captured Cubone. He beat Surge's Raichu once Grotle tired it out."

"I just went straight through Saffron. I did end up going to Lavender Town after I beat Surge, though, so I could catch a ghost-type."

"Did you get one?"

"Yeah," he replied. "A Duskull."

Paul considered that. "You've got your work cut out for you. They grow slowly. If I were you, I'd try to battle with it every chance you get."

Ash looked at his rival curiously. "Why are you helping me?"

The other boy was quiet for a moment before he shrugged. "Frankly, I want to fight trainers that can give me a challenge. You remind me of my brother—he's soft and irritating, but he _is_ strong. He won the Silver Conference a few years ago before retiring early to become a breeder. I think you can get stronger than him."

"Why's that?"

Paul smirked. "Because you don't seem like the type to settle down after you reach your goal. What kind of master goes soft once they stand at the summit?"

That made Ash grin. "I suppose one that doesn't have the nerve to keep going."

"Exactly," Paul's eyes gleamed. "You're good for someone our age. Most of the new scrubs aren't going to even get past Surge. Only a few will reach the Indigo League. I'm pretty sure you'll make it, but I won't accept a weak rival. If a little advice makes you stronger, then maybe I'll get a better fight later on."

It made sense, Ash surmised. He would be disappointed if Gary or Leaf turned out to be weak when they met in the Indigo Conference. He'd never really considered giving rival trainers advice before, but maybe it was something he could do more often if he felt he could help—after all, training would get boring if every foe he faced was too weak to be a challenge.

"Anyways," Paul continued. "I need to get back to training."

"I'll leave you to it," Ash replied, then turned and left his rival for Celadon City.

* * *

Once Ash got his team to Nurse Joy at the Pokemon Center in Celadon, he was torn in his next decision. He could challenge Erika anytime of the day. Celadon's gym wasn't known for being particularly difficult and he had no doubt that Pyro, Eevee, and Spectre could win a battle against her. He might even be able to beat all her grass-types with Pyro alone. But he wasn't arrogant enough to believe that his starter would be all he needed to best a Gym Leader.

He was really debating going to the department store first and buying some TMs for his team. That would give most of his team the versatility they needed. Sobek, Eevee, and Spectre were the ones most in need of new attacks.

The final deciding factor was the fact that he intended to use Eevee and Spectre in the gym battle against Erika, and both of them would need some new moves. The problem was Spectre needed to focus on learning Shadow Ball and Ash didn't want to divide his efforts between two different moves. Helping Eevee learn a new technique would just improve their relationship.

Ash walked to the counter and told Nurse Joy he was going out. She would be working on his team and all the other trainers' Pokemon for a while, so he had plenty of time to go out and get the TMs he would need.

* * *

An hour later and he was still staring at the huge selection of TMs at the Celadon Department Store. He knew that they were the leading business in Kanto when it came to selling trainer equipment, but he had not expected the walls to literally be stacked to the ceiling with technical machines. Ash couldn't decide on which moves he wanted.

The only one he'd picked out for sure was Iron Tail. It was a steel-type move that he could teach to Eevee and Pikachu to give them some much-needed versatility. He'd picked out the reusable version of the TM—though it was $1,000 more—so he could use it again if he needed to. If he really wanted to, he might even teach it to Pyro or Sobek if he felt they could use it.

Ash grabbed the first Stone Edge TM he saw. It was a one-time use, but that was fine seeing as the rest of his team had no use for it at the moment. Sobek was in dire need of some added versatility and Ash had been wanting to give him Stone Edge for a while now. The rock-type move would help him fight aerial opponents as well as the ice and bug-types he was vulnerable to.

Douse would be getting Ice Beam. It was a powerful attack that would help him fight off the grass-types which held a natural advantage against him. Ash was going to purchase the one-time use version of Ice Beam because frankly, he didn't have any other Pokemon that could use the move right now besides Douse and it was quite expensive to boot.

He was unsure what to get Pyro. The Dragon Claw TM was practically screaming his name, but Ash knew already that Pyro was having enough trouble learning Dragon Rush. Putting another dragon-type move on top of that and the even more difficult Dragon Dance might just frustrate the fire-type. Still, maybe the extra knowledge would give him a much-needed boost…

He took a leap of faith and bought it.

Ash also ended up selecting Brick Break. The fighting-type move would help Pyro combat dark-types and also give him an edge against any of the rock-types they met later on. It also had an added effect of destroying defensive barriers like Light Screen and Reflect. He picked out the reusable copy of that TM. Ash intended to give Brick Break to Douse as well.

That was all he could afford for the time being. He simply didn't have the funds to purchase any extra TMs, especially given that he hadn't yet restocked his supply of medicine. Ash brought the four TMs to the counter and the clerk got him out in good time. He then made his way downstairs to get the rest of the supplies he would need—Celadon Department Store did, after all, sell everything a trainer could need.

* * *

By the time he got back to the Pokemon Center, Ash was pretty sure his wallet would be crying if it could, but he didn't care. He still had enough funds to keep him going and that was just more incentive to beat down a few extra trainers on the road. Besides, now was no time to think about money—he had moves to give to his team. It was dark outside by now, but all of his earlier exhaustion was forgotten. He was just too excited to go to sleep.

Ash got his Pokemon back from Nurse Joy and practically ran out of the city to a clearing not far off from where Paul had been training. He didn't know if the other boy was still working with his team, but that didn't matter right now. Ash pulled out his TM Case and added the new discs to it before starting the process that would give his Pokemon their new weapons.

He set Pikachu and Eevee's Poke Balls in the case first and immediately selected the Iron Tail TM. Ash grinned the whole time as he watched their Poke Balls glow a metallic silver. Next was Pyro, who got Dragon Claw. Then Douse with Ice Beam and Sobek with Stone Edge. He'd save Brick Break for another day. Once he'd gotten knowledge of all the new moves transferred to his team's brains, Ash set them loose.

"Okay, guys," Ash began, a wide grin on his face. "So I'm sure that you know by now that you've got some new moves, right?"

Pyro clenched his claws and let out an eager growl. Pikachu snickered, cheeks sparking while his tail flexed slightly. Eevee inspected her tail with a little more interest than normal and Douse cracked his knuckles. Sobek bared his fangs in a snarl and hissed with delight.

Spectre seemed a little confused, but Ash filled him in. "You're still working on Shadow Ball, buddy. Once you master that, then I'll get you a new move of your own."

That made the Duskull excited, because he did a few flips in the air and settled on Pyro's head, though the Charmeleon snapped at him with annoyance.

"None of that," Ash stopped them quickly. His team paid rapt attention to him. "We're going to spend just a few minutes on your new moves. I want to make sure you know how to use them correctly, okay?"

A chorus of growls, chirps, and gurgles answered him. Ash nodded. "Okay, then. Pyro, you're first."

Pyro stepped forward, tail flame flaring while he waited eagerly for his trainer's orders. Ash looked around the dark clearing and pointed at a rock about the size of a small car. "Dragon Claw!"

Excitement roared through him as he watched emerald energy surge around Pyro's talons, then the Chameleon lunged at his target and slashed at it viciously. The Dragon Claw tore deep gouges into the rock as if it were mere styrofoam.

Ash grinned. It wouldn't have quite the same effect on a rock-type, but it was still obviously powerful. More than that, Pyro had gotten a clear grip on the dragon-type energy necessary for the technique—that would help him leaps and bounds when they practiced Dragon Rush and Dragon Dance in the future. "Good job, buddy. Pikachu, Eevee, you two are next."

Pikachu didn't actually wait for Ash to give him a command. Instead, he charged the same rock Pyro had attacked and jumped into the air. His tail glowed a metallic silver and, with a forward flip, he smashed it into the stone.

Ash blinked with surprise as the Iron Tail almost chopped its target in half. His grin widened. "That was great, Pikachu!"

Pikachu sniggered and Pyro spat a small flame at him for the mouse's attempt to one-up him, but Pikachu darted out of the way, much to the Charmeleon's irritation. Ash didn't both intervening since it wasn't escalating into a fight.

"Eevee, your turn," Ash offered her.

Eevee actually looked fairly interested and quickly rushed their target. She performed a similar jump and flip to Pikachu, driving the Iron Tail into the stone. It was obviously weaker than Pikachu's, seeing as Eevee hadn't been training as intensely as the rest of his team, but there was enough punch to it for Ash to _almost_ feel sorry for any rock-type unfortunate enough to be on the receiving end of Eevee's Iron Tail.

When she padded back to the group with her head held high, obviously proud of herself, Ash knelt and scratched under her chin. "Good girl."

Eevee soaked up the attention for a few seconds before sitting down and watching Douse take her place.

"Ice Beam!" Ash commanded.

Douse beat his round body with a white fist before focusing for a second. As they watched, a sphere of glowing, icy-blue energy gathered in front of him, then was unleashed into three bolts at the stone. The rock was frozen instantly, breaking further as the ice filled in all the cracks and expanded them.

Ash nodded. "Nice work, Douse."

Sobek, like Pikachu, didn't even bother waiting for orders. The croc thrashed his tail and immediately smashed a fist at the ground.

The team froze in surprise as spires of sharp rock punched out of the earth in a trail leading to the target, which was split clean in half by the Stone Edge. The whole process took a few seconds, but Ash bet that when it hit an enemy Pokemon, it would leave a mark not soon forgotten.

"Excellent, Sobek!"

Sobek growled, eyeing his trail of destruction with evident satisfaction in his gleaming onyx eyes. Ash glanced at Spectre, who had been watching with the others. He smiled at the small ghost.

"Spectre, do you want to have another go at Shadow Ball?"

Spectre nodded and floated forward, pushing his two wispy limbs out in front of him. Ash watched patiently as the Shadow Ball was formed, though it still took several seconds. They'd made some progress on it in the last few days, though the success rate was only 50/50 at best.

He watched as Spectre fired the Shadow Ball, launching it at the (now destroyed) target. Ash smiled as the ghost-type move made it to the stone and exploded, though it was still a good bit weaker than Eevee's comparatively more powerful Shadow Ball. That was fine with him, though. Spectre was making good progress and he couldn't ask for more than that.

"Good job, Spectre," Ash told him. The ghost floated over and tapped his forehead with delight, which Ash mimicked as usual. He glanced at his team and nodded to himself. "Alright, I'd say that's enough for tonight. We'll be working on those moves more as we travel to make sure we master them to the best of our abilities, but for now, we can rest. And tomorrow, we're going to challenge Erika. Pyro, Eevee, Spectre, I hope you three are ready."

Pyro breathed a stream of fire into the air and growled, dark eyes shining with a lust for battle. Spectre seemed excited as well, albeit not quite as eager as Pyro was. Eevee simply nodded, neither excited nor disappointed. Ash felt like he was really beginning to make progress with her.

"Anyways, let's get back to the Pokemon Center. I don't know about all of you, but I'm ready to sleep."

* * *

The next morning, Ash found himself standing in front of the Celadon City Gym. He looked up at the average sized building with determined eyes. He was walking out of here with a gym badge. Erika wasn't going to beat him.

He walked inside and immediately had to stop himself from gagging. An overwhelming, noxious scent filled his nose and made his eyes water. Ash had never smelled anything so disgusting in his life. He wasn't even sure how he managed to make it to the front desk.

A female attendant at the desk smirked at him with some amusement. "It gets better with a little time. Just breathe."

Ash didn't bother replying. He took a few deep breaths, wincing at the smell still pervading his senses. After a minute or so, he adapted to it as best he could and looked at the smirking attendant with a little embarrassment. "I'm here for a gym battle."

"I figured. You don't look like you'd be interested in our perfume line," she giggled. Ash didn't know how to respond to that, but the attendant didn't give him a chance to reply as she lifted a phone to her ear and dialed a number in. There was a brief pause, then she spoke into the device. "We've got a challenger here. Wake up Erika."

She hung up and Ash frowned. "Wake her up? Who would be sleeping at this time of day?"

"Erika would be," the attendant giggled. She gestured to a door on the side of the front desk for him to go through. "She's a bit lazier than the other Gym Leaders, but she's no less powerful for it. Good luck."

"Thanks," Ash replied, then made his way to the door.

The smell only intensified as Ash stepped into the main part of the gym and he took a moment to simply breathe and recover his burning senses. His nose stung and his eyes were still watering. He had some vague thought that there was probably a really powerful Gloom or something like it creating the noxious scent, but it smelled too bad for him to really focus on it.

He walked down a small path towards the field, glancing to the sides as he did so. The gym was designed like a huge greenhouse, with plants all over the place and glass panels for the ceiling. Ash assumed that was for Erika's grass-type Pokemon—they thrived on solar power and direct sunlight undoubtedly amplified their strength.

Once he reached the challenger's side of the field, Ash saw a beautiful, soft-featured teenage girl in a floral kimono waiting for him. She was rubbing her eyes tiredly, as if she had just woken up. He assumed that was Erika, especially when a tenant of hers came running over with a trio of Poke Balls in her hands.

Erika looked up at him with bleary eyes and offered a smile. "Well, hello there. I am Erika, the Gym Leader of Celadon Gym. So you're my challenger, are you?"

"Yes," he responded politely. "My name is Ash. I have three gym badges."

"Three?" Erika echoed, inspecting him with practiced eyes. "You seem like a new trainer…Did you start your journey recently?"

"Yes," Ash nodded. "I started traveling about three months ago, give or take a week. The last Gym Leader we beat was Lt. Surge."

Her eyes glinted with interest. "You defeated Surge? You're like the other boy that defeated me the day before yesterday, then. This battle should be worth my time."

Ash presumed she was talking about Paul when she mentioned another male trainer (especially one as young as himself). He nodded and Erika's lips curled into something like a smirk. "I think I'm going to have some fun with you. Referee, begin your announcements!"

"Yes, my lady!" A young woman bowed to Erika and quickly made her way to the referee's stand halfway across the field. "This Celadon Gym match will now begin. It will be a three-on-three battle and will end when all of one side's Pokemon are unable to continue. Furthermore, there are to be no substitutions. The challenger may have the first attack."

Erika tapped the release on her first Poke Ball and set loose a Gloom. Ash did his best not to gag as the smell got even worse. He couldn't believe that Erika was unaffected completely by the scent—did she even _have_ a sense of smell after training Gloom for so long?

He managed to grab Spectre's Poke Ball and released the ghost-type onto the field. Spectre eyed Gloom curiously and glanced at Ash with his single red orb. Ash smiled at him. "You're in a gym battle, Spectre. Let's see what you've got, okay?"

Spectre did a flip in the air and made a hollow cackle. The sight made Erika giggle. "This is a funny little one, wouldn't you say, Gloom?"

The grass-type on her side of the field didn't react to the ghost and yawned. Apparently, its personality matched that of its trainer's.

"Begin!" Declared the referee, slashing her hand down.

"Shadow Sneak," Ash commanded immediately. "Get in close and use Astonish if you see an opening."

Spectre dove at the nearest shadow and disappeared. Shadow Sneak allowed the user to merge their bodies into a shadow in order to make a quick surprise attack on the opponent. A Pokemon could use its own shadow to disappear, but it required more energy to maintain your own shadow than it did to just piggyback on another. There were plenty of shadows around the field thanks to the surrounding trees. Moreover, it was the only way Spectre could move especially fast—the ghost-type simply couldn't float at a very high speed.

Gloom got a nasty surprise as Spectre appeared at its feet and rammed his skull mask into the grass-type's face. It sputtered and backed up, only a little injured, but certainly surprised. Spectre's mask glowed an ominous purple-gray as he tried to follow up with Astonish, but Erika wasn't having any of it.

"Blow it away with Petal Blizzard. Then use Sunny Day."

Spectre made a hollow sound of surprise as a gale of sharp flower petals met his attempt at Astonish head-on. Gloom's attack was far stronger than the ghost-type's and sent Spectre spiraling through the air until he was all the way back on Ash's side of the field.

"Are you okay, Spectre?" He demanded. Spectre looked at him and nodded. That was one thing about Spectre that Ash was grateful for—even if he wasn't particularly fast or strong, his wispy body and skull mask were incredibly tough. It took a lot to actually hurt the little ghost.

Before he could dish out another command, Gloom fired a glowing sphere into the air from its bulb, which lined up with the sun and spread harsh sunlight over the whole battlefield. Ash felt the temperature rise and mentally cursed when the shadows over the field disappeared. Now Spectre would have to use more of his energy if he needed to move quickly.

On the other hand, Gloom looked positively fired up. It was actually jumping up and down like it had had one too many shots of espresso. He didn't know much about Gloom itself, but he was plenty aware that grass-types got a lot stronger when exposed to powerful sunlight. If its ability was something like Solar Power or Chlorophyll, that would give it an unforgiving power boost.

He frowned. Suddenly this fight was looking a lot harder.

Erika was smiling across the field and he was certain it was because she knew she had the whole battlefield under her control. She raised her hand with a flourish of her kimono and instigated the next stage of the fight. "Toxic Bomb!"

Gloom suddenly blurred away with shocking speed and appeared to Spectre's left. Ash barely had time to react before the grass-type pointed its bulb at the ghost and fired a noxious ball of sludge. "Protect!"

The green energy shield materialized as the sludge went airborne between them. Spectre leered at Gloom for the surprise attack, but had no chance to counter as it continued to rapid fire the venomous concoctions at him.

Ash bit his lip. He was certain now that Gloom's ability was Chlorophyll. It was the only explanation for the insane bursts of speed he was seeing from Gloom. Erika probably had her whole strategy centered around judicious use of Sunny Day and Chlorophyll to give her Pokemon a deadly advantage. The added boost would let her team annihilate enemies with toxins while avoiding all other attacks with that ungodly speed.

He was trying to come up with a strategy when Spectre's Protect gave way and the ghost took a clean hit from the sludge blasts Gloom was still firing. Spectre made a hollow sound of distress and floated away, trying to avoid any further attacks. Strangely though, Gloom had stopped attacking after hitting its opponent. Ash frowned at the confusing move until Spectre's body glowed purple and began to shake violently.

Poison. Ash's Pokemon had been poisoned before, but it was nothing like this. Usually, the toxins would wear down a Pokemon gradually as the battle progressed. This venom almost seemed to be actively attacking Spectre.

It had to be Toxic, a poison-type move that delivered an especially lethal dose of venom. Most poisons were used in a fixed amount that would slowly whittle away at a Pokemon's strength. Toxic was different. Its poison actually drew from the target's own energy reserves to multiply itself. One dose quickly grew into two, then four, and so on. A self-replicating poison that actively assaulted the enemy's body.

Many trainers hated Toxic, and with good reason. Once a Pokemon was poisoned by the move, it didn't matter how powerful they were—if they couldn't heal themselves of the poison or were immune to it, they would faint in a matter of minutes. Even Pokemon on the level of the Elite Four were vulnerable to the technique, though most of them could rid themselves of the poison quickly. It was a popular move in the higher ranks of trainers for its deadly efficiency, but if a Pokemon wasn't treated quickly, Toxic could be fatal. For that matter, any poison had the potential to kill, but Toxic was infamous for claiming more victims than any other poison-type moves.

The only downside of Toxic was that it was difficult to aim because building that unique cocktail of venoms took a great deal of concentration. Erika had seemingly mixed it with Sludge Bomb to increase the chance of hitting an enemy. It was a brilliant combination and all the more lethal.

"We've got to finish this fast, Spectre!" Ash shouted. The ghost nodded and winced as Toxic surged through his body again. Ash knew they didn't have much time, so he went for a move he really hadn't wanted to rely on until Erika had whipped out Toxic. "Confuse Ray!"

Spectre's single red eye glowed a bright, ominous red that washed eerie crimson light over the field. Erika, however, wasn't about to let him get away with confusing her Pokemon.

"Gloom, use Petal Blizzard!"

The Confuse Ray was made harmless to Gloom as a whirlwind of petals surged between the grass-type and the offending attack, so thick that it protected Gloom from Spectre's move. However, Ash wasn't going to give up on it just like that. "Shadow Sneak!"

Gloom was taken by surprise again as Spectre's skull mask smacked into its side, tipping it over. The grass-type quickly got back up, but not before Ash seized his opportunity to take advantage of its momentary vulnerability. "Confuse Ray!"

This time, there was no escaping the ghost-type move. Gloom squealed as its mind was twisted by Confuse Ray, much to Ash's relief. It was still going to be ridiculously fast thanks to its Chlorophyll ability, but they had a better chance at defeating it than they had beforehand. He looked across the field and started when he saw Erika still smiling. Ash frowned. Her Pokemon was confused. What on earth was she—

He yelped as a blast of solar energy ripped through the air, missing Spectre by mere centimeters and smashing into a nearby tree with devastating force. Eyes wide, Ash could see Gloom was definitely still confused, but confused or not, that had been a true Solar Beam. If Spectre got hit with that, it would probably end the fight right then and there.

The grass-type was rapidly charging another Solar Beam and Ash realized it would only take seconds for it to fire since the sun was still shining harshly. He had to take it out while it was confused before Toxic brought Spectre down. "Shadow Ball! Keep away from its Solar Beams and hit it as many times as you can!"

Spectre did as he instructed quickly and began to form a Shadow Ball. Ash grit his teeth when it still took a good bit of time to build up, and mentally swore when the move missed. Gloom was confused, yes, but its Chlorophyll was still in play and it was randomly darting around the field, launching Solar Beams now and again to try and hit some invisible enemy.

Only one Shadow Ball hit Gloom in the end, and that was just because it had tripped from its own random movements. The ghost-type move obviously hurt, but it wasn't enough to stop Gloom, and Ash was worried that Spectre was becoming increasingly hurt from the effects of Toxic. The ghost was just trying to stay afloat at this point. He was about to recall Spectre when Gloom suddenly rushed at his Pokemon with a Solar Beam charging, getting right up in the Duskull's face. Ash suddenly had an idea and decided to go for it.

"Protect!"

Erika's eyes widened as a green energy shield quickly formed around Spectre and a moment later, Gloom launched the Solar Beam right into it. They were just a foot apart, so the surge of light hit Spectre's Protect and exploded point-blank right in Gloom's face. A huge cloud of smoke filled the field as the blast settled, but Ash was relieved to see Spectre float out of it, albeit hurt and barely conscious from the poison.

Gloom had not been so fortunate. The confusion had driven it to fire Solar Beam right into an impenetrable shield mere inches away. Its own attack had exploded so close to the grass-type that it had knocked Gloom out. Ash could only imagine the surprise on Gloom's face when the move blew up in its face. He was just glad that his battle against Paul was still fresh in his mind—Spectre's victory against Gloom was a lucky win on Ash's part.

Erika recalled Gloom and Ash did the same for Spectre. There was no way the little ghost could keep fighting, not after the debilitating effects of Toxic had worked their way through his body for so long. He smiled at the Poke Ball in his hand. "You were great, Spectre. Now take a break. You've earned it."

"I'll admit, that surprised me," Erika called to him. "I didn't expect such a tactic from a trainer as young as yourself."

"I picked it up from someone else," Ash admitted. "Though I never thought I would have to use it so fast."

She smiled again. "Applying an adversary's moves as your own is part of growing as a trainer. Adaptation and personal ability can be enhanced when you grow with others. You aren't arrogant enough to deny that it is not only your own skills that grant you victory. That is a good thing."

Erika tapped the release on her second Poke Ball and sent out a Weepinbell. Ash chewed his lip thoughtfully as he considered the opponent. Weepinbell likely had Chlorophyll just like Gloom, so it would be absurdly fast and powerful as long as the sun was still bright. However, he could use the same harsh sunlight to his advantage.

Pyro appeared with a furious roar and a gout of flame that grew in the higher temperatures. Ash smirked at the delighted look on his starter's face. Pyro loved heat, and Sunny Day undoubtedly felt like paradise to him.

"Oh my," Erika murmured with a frown. "A fire-type. Weepinbell, use Toxic Bomb!"

Ash's eyes widened as the grass-type made to use the same deadly combination that Gloom had used on Spectre. He immediately snapped. "Flamethrower! Burn the poison away before it hits!"

Weepinbell spat the poison-type combination move at Pyro, but the Charmeleon wasn't having any of it and retaliated with a torrent of flames. The grass-type squelched with fear and darted away from the fire with incredible speed—Ash's guess for its ability being Chlorophyll had been correct.

"It's fast, so watch yourself," Ash began to say. "I'll bet it can fire Solar Beams as well. Make sure you don't get hit with its poison. If that tags you, it's going to knock you out one way or another."

Pyro's tail lashed in acknowledgement as the fire-type glared at the Weepinbell rushing around the field. Erika was apparently using its blinding speed to her advantage as she considered her opponent and came up with a strategy. Ash wasn't going to give her any more time than she'd already had.

"Flamethrower again! Set the whole field on fire!"

Pyro's dark eyes grew bright with unrestrained glee as he sucked in a huge breath, then doused the other side of the field with his furious, burning roar. The Flamethrower only grew stronger in the intense heat, which Ash was sure by now Erika was regretting. Enhanced sunlight gave her grass-types an edge with speed and the ability to fire Solar Beam ridiculously fast, but it was a double-edged sword; fire-type adversaries like Pyro would gain enough power to become unstoppable forces of destruction. Any grass-type move without the raw power of a Solar Beam would be burned away ruthlessly by Pyro's unforgiving flames.

Weepinbell was frantically trying to avoid being hit by the column of fire, but it was only a matter of time before the enhanced flames tagged it. Ash grinned as he saw Weepinbell stumble on the field, leaves burnt, and jumped at the opportunity presented to him. "Fire Fang!"

Pyro lunged at the grass-type and snapped at it with his burning teeth. Weepinbell managed to scramble up and avoid the first bite, but Pyro's sharp claws lashed out to grab at it. Ash watched as his starter yanked the grass-type to him, opened his jaws, and bit down harshly on Weepinbell's body. Pyro shook Weepinbell in his jaws like a Growlithe with a Rattata, burning it ruthlessly until it grew slack and went still. He threw it to the other side of the field, where Erika swiftly recalled it.

Ash couldn't stop grinning. That was becoming a favored tactic of his. Pyro and Sobek were two of his strongest Pokemon, and their sharp teeth were useful weapons. Biting down hard and shaking the opponent like a rag doll was effective, if rather brutal and tough to watch sometimes.

Erika glared at the Charmeleon with some frustration as she sent out her third Pokemon—a large Parasect. "Parasect dear, our opponent is a fire-type. Please deal with it quickly before it can use its flames to ravage the field."

Parasect clicked its claws, but it was eyeing the furious Charmeleon nervously. Ash couldn't blame it—Pyro was thrashing his fiery tail from side to side and exhaling embers with every breath. His blood was pumping and he was ready for a fight, type advantage or not. Weepinbell had simply been the first course. Parasect was the seconds Pyro was starving for.

"Effect Spores!" Erika commanded immediately. "Use Solar Beam to keep it away. Cross Poison if it gets close. Watch the teeth—it can use Fire Fang."

The grass-type clicked its claws again and shook its body, sending out a cloud of spores from its shell. Ash eyed the cloud with some nervousness—Parasect were notorious for having every kind of spore available to them, capable of debilitating enemies with poison, paralysis, and sleep. It wouldn't be good if Pyro got hit with that.

"Burn it away," Ash ordered.

Pyro snarled and released another surge of flames from his jaws, incinerating the spores without mercy. Erika frowned across the field, but smiled as a surprise Solar Beam from Parasect ripped through the destroyed spores and collided with the Charmeleon. Pyro roared furiously and glared at Parasect, more angry than hurt.

Solar Beam was strong, but it was still a grass-type move. Pyro could resist it, and he hadn't been injured up until now. Ash could tell that his starter was still raring to go and decided to try and finish the fight before Parasect could get any more status afflicting moves out. "Get in close. Use Flamethrower to counter its Solar Beams and hit it with Fire Fang. Don't let it get away."

Pyro didn't wait another second to lunge at the insect the moment Ash's string of commands had been given to him. Parasect clicked its claws nervously at the charging fire-type and immediately launched another Solar Beam, only for it to meet Pyro's Flamethrower in a direct collision. When the Charmeleon continued to run at his opponent, Parasect raised its claws and slashed in an X-formation, launching a razor-sharp projectile of poison that Ash figured was the Cross Poison Erika had mentioned.

"Metal Claw!" He shouted instantly. "Don't let the poison hit you!"

Silver talons glowed on Pyro's hands as he rent through the Cross Poison with Metal Claw, the toxins harmlessly washing off of the steel-type move. They got a surprise as a different slashing move hit Pyro, but it only served to infuriate the Charmeleon even further. Parasect didn't have any moves that could deal serious damage to Pyro, it seemed, so it was just throwing everything it had at the fire-type.

It wasn't enough. Pyro made it to Parasect and snapped at it, but the insect jabbed at him with its claws to keep him away. Pyro snarled and grabbed the huge claws with his own to keep the grass-type from slashing him again, but he was still kept far enough away to prevent him from biting Parasect with Fire Fang. Erika was shouting commands for Parasect to use Effect Spores again when Ash came up with a way to finish off the insect.

"Flip it onto its side!"

Parasect made a shrill sound of surprise as Pyro used the grip he had on its enormous claws to heave his opponent to the side and unbalanced it. The bug ended up lying on its soft, mushroom shell with its legs in the air, flailing desperately to right itself. Pyro let its huge claws go and lunged at the insect with a snarl before it could recover.

Ash had to wince as he heard the distinct cracking sound of Parasect's exoskeleton breaking under the force of Pyro's powerful jaws. The fire-type delivered several more punishing bites to his enemy before Erika recalled Parasect and ended the battle. Pyro roared his victory and glared at Erika, probably eager for her to send out another Pokemon, but when it became clear that she was done, he settled down and walked over to Ash.

Ash smiled at his starter and scratched the scaly horn on top of Pyro's head fondly. "You were great, buddy. I'm so proud of you."

Pyro snorted and leaned into his touch, soaking up the attention while Erika made her way over to them.

The Gym Leader was frowning. "I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little disappointed in myself. Your Charmeleon was stronger than I anticipated."

"Pyro is probably the strongest Pokemon I have," Ash told her. "He was my starter."

Pyro butted his scaly head into Ash's chest with a growl of agreement. Erika smiled at the sight and her frown vanished. "You clearly have a strong bond with him. I was impressed by how fluidly the two of you battled together. Your fighting style is rather brutish and focused on little more than raw power, but it is effective. I'll hand you that."

She pulled a small badge out of her kimono and offered it to him. "This is the Rainbow Badge. You've earned it."

Ash took it from her gratefully and carefully placed it in his pocket. He would put in his badge case later. "Thank you, Erika. It was a good battle."

"I'd hardly say so," she smiled wryly. "I think we both know that I was rather outmatched by your Charmeleon. However, I did use the team that I have for trainers with only three badges—all of them are rather young and not up to my main team's standards yet. If you find yourself coming through Celadon again later on, I'd welcome a rematch. I'll use my true team against you next time—and you will find no easy victory against them, fire or no fire."

Ash grinned at the thought. "I'll definitely come around for that. Thanks again, Erika."

He was halfway to the door when Erika called to him again and offered a mischievous wink. "When you've grown into a man, come back to my gym, Mr. Ketchum. I think you'll be rather handsome once you've gotten a little taller and I'm sure many of my students here would find you…interesting, to say the least."

Several giggles came from the female gym trainers that had congregated around Erika. Ash felt his face flush with heat and quickly left the building. He might have won the battle, but Erika had definitely gotten the last laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woohoo, Wes and Rui are here. This is the first major change for the story. You'll see more big changes soon enough.
> 
> Before I list the teams, just reminding everyone that there's a detailed list of each trainer and their team on my fanfiction.net profile. Check it out if you're looking for more in-depth details than the lists I post at the end of each chapter. It includes abilities and the complete move sets for each Pokemon.
> 
> Cool, that's me done. Hope you enjoyed the new stuff.
> 
> Ash Ketchum
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Pyro (Male Charmeleon)
> 
> Pikachu (Male)
> 
> Sobek (Male Krokorok)
> 
> Eevee (Female)
> 
> Douse (Male Poliwhirl)
> 
> Spectre (Male Duskull)
> 
> /
> 
> Cynthia
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Garchomp (Female)
> 
> Glaceon (Female)
> 
> Roserade (Female)
> 
> Lucario (Male)
> 
> Spiritomb
> 
> /
> 
> Wes
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Umbreon (Male)
> 
> Entei (Male)
> 
> Raikou (Male)
> 
> /
> 
> Paul
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Grotle (Male)
> 
> Nidorino (Male)
> 
> Cubone (Male)
> 
> Tentacruel (Female)


	8. Consequence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Paul and Gary convince Ash to try gambling. Nobody winds up having much fun.

_Chapter Eight: Consequence_

Ash's team only took a few hours to heal completely following the fight with Erika. Pyro had only taken one or two hits, though Spectre did need more time for Nurse Joy to ensure that the effects of Toxic had left his body. Ash was more than willing to give him the break he needed. Spectre hadn't been on his team for very long, but he'd proven himself by taking down Erika's crafty Gloom.

Currently, he was sitting at a booth in the lobby eating dinner with his Pokemon while he contemplated his next move. Pyro and Sobek had already eaten their fill and were curled up by his feet under the table. Douse was eating on the other side of the booth, taking his time while he ate. Pikachu had a bottle of ketchup and was happily licking at the tomato-flavored condiment while Spectre floated by the window and stared out at the city. Ash found out that the Duskull only needed a few pieces of Pokemon food for him to be satisfied.

Eevee was actually sleeping in his lap. She had been pleased to hear that they won the battle against Erika and didn't seem too upset that she hadn't been able to take part in the battle. Ash had a feeling she wasn't quite ready to start fighting with him yet, but that was okay. She was warming up to him more and more every day. The fact that she willingly took part in training now was evidence of that, not to mention she got a little closer to the rest of the team. Ash was just glad she was happy now.

Everyone looked content in his eyes. Well, almost everyone.

Spectre had been acting oddly ever since he'd been healed. Ash didn't think he was upset by the battle, but the ghost seemed to be utterly fixed on something outside that he couldn't comprehend. Despite Ash's attempts to get his attention, Spectre continued to stare outside with intense scrutiny.

Sobek was behaving strangely as well. The croc seemed to be trying to go to sleep, but something kept distracting him, jolting the ground-type awake until he gave up the attempt at napping. After that, he cocked his head and simply went quiet, as if he were straining his senses to detect something just beyond his reach.

Ash had to frown at that. Sobek and Spectre weren't exactly friendly towards each other, so if they were both concerned about something, he deemed it smart to heed whatever they sensed. However, they weren't making any active efforts to find or warn him about whatever it was. What they sensed had their attention, but nothing more.

He'd figure it out tomorrow, Ash decided. It was late, his team was tired, and frankly they all needed to sleep. His plan now, seeing as they still had two months before the St. Anne arrived in Vermillion, was to head south towards Fuchsia City. There, he would challenge Koga, the Gym Leader that specialized in poison-type Pokemon.

Ash knew Koga was one of the stronger Kantonian Gym Leaders and was even regarded as an Elite Four candidate. There were numerous lower-class gyms throughout the region that would be easier to win at, but Ash wanted to _challenge_ himself. He saw no potential growth for his team if they fought weak enemies. Only powerful foes would help them get stronger, thus bringing Ash closer to his goal.

Not to mention he'd stand no chance against the legendary beasts Wes commanded at the Indigo League if he set his sights on weak enemies.

It would take him about a month to reach Fuchsia City from Celadon. The road to Fuchsia was a range of forests and rough plains that harbored strong wild Pokemon and trainers who congregated there to train. Ash was eager to make the trip, thinking about all the experience his team could gain while traveling.

His imagination grinder to a halt as Pikachu's small body fell against him. Ash smiled as he realized the little rodent was asleep, belly full of ketchup and content as could be. He quietly recalled Pikachu and the other members of his team, though he lifted Eevee into his arms and carried her back to his room. Ash would set the rest of the team loose again to sleep once he settled for the night, as he always did.

They were tired. It had been a long day, after all.

* * *

Ash woke up to a loud knock on his door. He groaned and opened up bleary eyes, squinting at the clock by his bed. It was only eight in the morning, something that his team had also taken notice of. Pyro and Sobek were glaring daggers at the door, obviously eager to rend the foolish soul who had dared to wake them. Douse was rubbing his eyes tiredly and Pikachu was still snoring. Ash smirked at that. The electric-type had keen ears, but he had a habit of going into a food coma after eating lots of ketchup.

Eevee gave the door an annoyed look as whoever was on the other side knocked again, so Ash got up and went to answer it. He frowned when he couldn't find Spectre though. A quick glance around the room was insufficient to locate the small ghost, but a third knock forced him to answer, lest Pyro and Sobek tear the door down to attack whoever had woken them up.

"Ashy-boy!"

Ash had to blink a few times to get his mind to register that Gary was standing at his door with a wide grin. The other boy looked him up and down and smirked. "You look like shit."

"I just woke up," Ash retorted. "What are you doing here? Scratch that, how'd you even _find_ me?"

"I told him."

The last person Ash expected to see was Paul, but the other boy was leaning against the wall next to the door. Ash looked between Gary and Paul with surprise. "You two know each other?"

Gary leered at the violet-haired trainer. "Well, sort of. We've battled a few times before."

"What he means is he's challenged me three times and I curb-stomped him twice," Paul smirked.

"Just because your stupid Elekid decided to evolve in the middle of our fight…" Gary muttered under his breath, then shook his head and grinned at Ash. "Well, that doesn't matter. Get yourself dressed, Ashy boy. We've got places to be!"

"Like what?" Ash arched an eyebrow. "I was going to set out for Fuchsia City today."

"Uh-uh!" Gary wagged a finger in front of him in a chastising manner. "You've only been here a day or two, right? Have you checked out the Game Corner?"

"The what?"

"Exactly," Gary smirked.

Paul intervened then. "Celadon City has a Game Corner that offers rare Pokemon and items as prizes. There are Pokemon here that are ridiculously hard to find in the wild. Dratini, for one."

That got Ash's attention in an instant. "They give out _dragons_ as prizes for gambling?!"

"Aren't you glad we showed up to tell you?" Gary crowed triumphantly. "There are a couple of others you can get that are worth checking out, but I've got my eye on that dragon. I figured we should all go win a Pokemon from the Game Corner and then we can compare who did the best job training them at the Indigo League."

Paul shrugged. "I'm not really that interested in the gaming bit, but they do have some Pokemon I'd like to try and win. It's not an opportunity to be missed."

"Let me get dressed real quick," Ash said hurriedly, rushing back into his room without a second thought. His team looked bewildered by his sudden energy and didn't even have time to blink before Ash recalled them all, threw on his clothes, hat, and darted back out into the hall.

He remembered that Spectre hadn't been in the room and looked around the hall with a frown. "Have either of you seen a Duskull?"

Gary arched an eyebrow. "Duskull?"

"It's a ghost-type," Paul filled him in as he faced Ash. "Why do you ask?"

"My Duskull isn't in my room," Ash replied. "He's probably fine, but I hope he's not floating around scaring people. He likes to do that."

Gary shrugged. "Well, ghosts are pretty smart. He should be able to track you down if he comes back here. Gramps told me once that they can track a certain life force if they've been around it long enough."

Ash was still frowning, but Gary threw an arm around his shoulder and dragged him off. "C'mon, Ash, we got some gambling to do!"

* * *

The three boys made it to the Game Corner with little difficulty. It was certainly flashy enough, with a huge neon sign over the entrance and posters displaying the various prizes that could be won. Ash's jaw dropped as he eyed the list of Pokemon he had the potential to win here- Dratini, Scyther, Pinsir, Clefairy, Lickitung, Tangela, Abra, Sandshrew, Porygon…The list went on and on. Sandshrew weren't that hard to find and Abra were just really annoying to capture, but Scyther, Pinsir, Lickitung and Tangela were absurdly difficult to find.

Yet even they couldn't match the ungodly rarity of Dratini or Clefairy. They were the highest prizes available for that very reason, and Ash could only assume the Game Corner had access to a high class breeder in order to obtain the rare Pokemon. Porygon was another rarity, one that had been developed entirely with computer data. They had only been declared officially as Pokemon in recent years and most were owned by the League, so again, Ash assumed the Game Corner had some big-shot contact.

He would kill to get any one of them. Ash would have to win a load of coins for them, but if he did it, he would gain an invaluable new teammate.

They went inside and made their way through the crowds of gamblers to the desk in the back, where they paid for a coin case and 100 coins to start out. Everything else they'd have to earn or buy. Ash was going for the Scyther. There weren't many bug-types that were powerful enough to hold their own in the upper ranks of trainers, but Scyther and its evolved form Scizor were among that limited number. Scyther were fast and powerful—traits Ash was, admittedly, rather fond of. Aside from that, bug-type moves would give him an added advantage against Sabrina's psychic Pokemon when Ash challenged her. He would have to earn 6,500 coins, but that would be a small price to pay given how rare the bug-type was.

Ash, Gary, and Paul made their way to separate machines and started to play. Ash picked a slot machine and read the instructions. It was a relatively simple game—all he had to do was predict the pictures that came and try to match them up. If he could get straights every time, he would continue to gain coins. It wasn't hard to earn coins even with misses, but scoring big would be difficult. The best match he could get was three sevens across the slots. That would earn him five hundred coins. If Ash was lucky and predicted the slots well, he could get the 6,500 coins he needed for Scyther.

He inserted a coin and glared at the slots as they spun quickly, challenging him to predict the images. After a minute of watching the first slot spin and trying to predict the seven, Ash hit the stop button. He scowled when the slot came to a standstill more slowly than he'd anticipated and made him land on the picture of a Shellder's face. Ash frowned as he struck out on the other two slots as well and only managed to earn back the coin he'd put in.

This was going to take a while.

* * *

Five hours later and Ash was still at the same slot machine. He'd managed to earn about 1,000 coins, which was nowhere near enough for him to get the Scyther he wanted. It was ridiculously frustrating and he was just about ready to set Pyro on the machine that seemed to mock him with every miss he made.

"How goes the battle?"

Ash jumped as Paul appeared behind him. He scowled and jabbed his thumb at the slot machine. "Terrible. I still need like 5,000 coins to get a Scyther. I'll be here all day before I even earn half of that."

Paul smirked. "It's not easy to pick up on. It's a good thing there's a Game Corner in my home city. I've played all these before and then some."

He held up a Poke Ball that Ash could only blink at dumbly until he realized what it was. "You already got enough coins?!"

"Like I said, I've done this before," the violet-haired boy shrugged. He tossed the Poke Ball up and snatched it out of the air. "Besides, I only had to earn 5,000 coins. That's nothing. Some of the prizes at the Veilstone Game Corner are like 15,000 coins. Hyper Beam and Giga Impact TMs, for example."

Ash just gaped at his rival. It didn't even occur to him to ask which Pokemon Paul had chosen. He was still trying to compute the fact that Paul could beat these games and earn five times as much as Ash had in the same amount of time.

"Oh, look at that," Paul remarked as he looked over Ash's head. "Your ghost is back."

Ash blinked and spun around to find Spectre floating directly behind him. He smiled at the little ghost, relieved that he'd found his way to Ash again. "Hey there, buddy. Where'd you float off to?"

Spectre tapped his head and pointed towards the back of the Game Corner. Ash arched his eyebrow. "What were you doing here—hey!"

The ghost suddenly snatched his hat and started floating away. Ash growled and lunged after him, still annoyed by his inability to win at the slot machine. He wasn't in the mood for this. "Spectre, give me back my hat!"

Spectre floated along towards the back of the building, Ash chasing after him while Paul followed with a somewhat bored expression. The ghost led them to a lone potted plant that stood out from the rest of the Game Corner. Once they reached it, Spectre turned to Ash and gestured at the wall urgently.

Ash frowned. "What is it?"

"It looks like there's a door there," Paul said as he inspected the plain white walls. "It kind of blends in, doesn't it?"

He realized that there was indeed a door, colored white to match the walls and only discernible by the faint rectangular outline. There was no sign on it that told them not to enter, so Ash pushed on it. The door swung in to reveal a stairway heading down. Spectre immediately floated down, much to Ash's chagrin. He glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then followed the ghost-type with Paul.

Everything inside was white and black, as though the place had been designed like a checker board. Ash and Paul remained quiet as they went lower and lower, following Spectre to whatever it was he wanted to show them. They reached the end of the stairs shortly and paused at a corner that would take them to a hallway when they heard voices talking.

"Did you hear about what happened in Lavender Town? At the Pokemon Tower?"

"Yeah, Lady Ariana went and got caught by some big-shot League Trainer. What of it? We already broke her out. If you want big news, freshman, you ought to know that Petrel went and got what we needed to pull off Project: Darkwing. Now all we gotta do is ship it west and our allies there will weaponize it."

"Oh! Really? That's huge news!"

"I've been a part of Team Rocket for two years now, freshman. I'm a first-class soldier just below the Admins—staying in the know is what I do. Besides, once this deal goes down with Project: Darkwing, we're gonna hit the big times. That and Project: Origin, but even Lady Ariana ain't disclosing too much about it."

"Sheesh, all these big projects are going down at once? It's no wonder Proton's running us ragged."

"Shut up. If Proton hears you say that, you'll be on toilet duty for a month. Do you have any idea how many toilets there are in this base?"

"Um…"

Ash had frozen after the mention of Team Rocket and scarcely remembered how to breathe until Paul jerked his shoulder. The other boy nodded back to the stairs, an ugly scowl on his face. Paul led Ash back up the stairs in dead silence, with Spectre following.

They didn't stop walking until they were aboveground and outside the Game Corner, where Paul whirled around with a furious expression on his face.

"Rockets?!" He hissed. "What the hell are they doing here?!"

"Probably running the Game Corner," Ash replied, still a little shocked after their discovery. However, his shock was quickly giving way to burning rage. "The only thing they really seem to care about is money. Plus that's the only way they could do this without someone noticing."

Paul muttered something under his breath that was probably a word ten-year olds shouldn't know. He cast a venomous look at the Game Corner. "We've got to attack them."

"Attack who?"

They jumped and spun towards the voice as Gary made his way out of the Game Corner. He seemed startled by the intense expressions on their faces and frowned. "Something wrong?"

Paul grabbed the sleeve of his shirt and started to drag Gary towards the Pokemon Center. Ash and Spectre followed them.

"H-hey!" Gary protested with an annoyed tone. "What's the big idea?!"

"We need to plan. Now," Paul growled.

* * *

Gary crossed his arms at the circular table and frowned hard. "Let me get this straight; you're saying there's a Team Rocket base in the Game Corner?"

"No, the _Game Corner_ is a Team Rocket base," Ash corrected him in a hushed tone. At Gary's startled expression, he explained his thoughts. "The only way they could get away with whatever they have going on down there is if they own the whole building. Those rare Pokemon they give out as prizes? I'll bet you anything those are Pokemon they've gotten illegally."

Gary held a Poke Ball up in his hand and stared at it. "I wonder where they got this one, then…"

"You got enough coins for a Pokemon, too?!" Ash gaped at him. "Am I the only one that sucks at those games?"

"No one cares about games right now!" Paul snapped. "This is real. Remember what happened in Mt. Moon?"

Ash grimaced and lifted a hand to his left shoulder, the spot where Proton's Crobat had bitten him with its deadly Poison Fang. The injury had scarred over by now, but just thinking about the battle reminded him of what could happen when they fought Team Rocket.

"What happened at Mt. Moon?" Gary asked as he leaned forward on the table curiously.

Paul sighed in exasperation and hurriedly filled him in. As Ash waited for him to finish telling Gary the story, Spectre floated in front of him and tapped his forehead. Ash smiled back at tapped the ghost's skull mask. "Thank you, Spectre. We never would've found out about the base if it wasn't for you. But how did you know?"

Spectre only turned to gaze in the direction of the Game Corner, an intense concentration in his single red eye. Ash remembered how focused he and Sobek had been the night before and wondered if Team Rocket was doing something that affected ghost and dark-types. They used similar energies, otherworldly and alien to most other Pokemon. But gatherings of that energy (like the one Spiritomb had gathered at Pokemon Tower, for instance) drew their attention like Venomoth's to a flame.

Perhaps Team Rocket was trying to repeat the process—Cynthia had foiled them, after all, and captured the Spiritomb Ariana had wanted. Maybe they had somehow gotten their hands on another Odd Keystone and were trying to replicate the process in their own base.

"…that's the gist of it," Paul finished telling Gary. Ash looked up as the violet-haired boy glanced at him. "So back to the present. If there's a Rocket Base here, we ought to go in there and crush it."

"Shouldn't we just call the police?" Gary set his hand on the table and started tapping one finger restlessly. "These are criminals we're talking about. We can't exactly arrest them."

"No, but we can give them a nasty surprise," Ash admitted. He met Paul's level gaze with his own. "You called Cynthia before we attacked the Rockets at Mt. Moon. She's nowhere nearby, but suppose we call the police on my PokeNav and then hit them while Officer Jenny is getting her squad ready?"

Paul nodded. "It'll work better this time since we don't have Rockets breathing down our necks from the start."

"This is crazy!" Gary exclaimed. "This is Team Rocket! And what are we? Three newbie trainers with only four badges apiece! What makes you think we can take them on?!"

"They aren't strong on their own," Ash told him with surety. "Only the Admins are really threatening. And they're even worse off when you catch them by surprise."

Gary opened his mouth to protest again, but Paul cut him off with a glare. "Those worthless thieves are used to running the place. They think they can take Pokemon whenever they want from whoever they want. They've pissed me off one too many times and I'm craving some payback right about now."

Ash nodded, his eyes dark. He hated Team Rocket as much as Paul, both for stealing Pokemon and personally injuring them. They were the lowest of the low, with no morals and no rules. He would be more than happy to give them a taste of their own medicine. "Gary, we're going, whether you're joining us or not. It's just something we have to do."

Gary scowled at him. "I think you're being reckless out of your mind, and coming from me that's saying something given how many times Gramps has lectured me. But that's not going to stop you from fighting them, is it?"

When the two other boys shook their heads, Gary sighed. "I can't say I'm fully in support of this, but I'm not about to let you guys get yourselves captured or worse."

Ash glanced between his two rivals. "Alright, then let's do this. Everyone has their teams on them? All of them are at full strength and ready for a fight?"

Gary and Paul both nodded, so Ash recalled Spectre to his Poke Ball and stood up from the table. "Good. Let's go give them a taste of their own medicine."

* * *

Getting back to the Game Corner and into the underground base wasn't that hard. All the people in there had only games and prizes on their minds. No one was going to pay attention to three boys heading to the back to seemingly check out a plant.

Ash quietly pushed the door in and glanced over his shoulder. Paul nodded—no one was watching them. The three boys slipped inside the base and closed the door behind them, then made their way down the stairs.

Gary hissed out a question. "So when is it exactly that we call the police?"

"Officer Jenny isn't going to take us for our word right off the bat," Ash replied lowly. "We need proof. Best way to do that is take out a grunt or two and show her them on my PokeNav's video phone."

"And how exactly are we going to get a grunt to show their face in front of a camera? Ask them nicely?"

Ash smirked and released Spectre. The ghost immediately glanced towards the downstairs, to whatever was drawing his attention, until Ash tapped his mask. "Hey, buddy. I need you to focus. We're fighting Team Rocket—remember them?"

When the ghost nodded, Ash went on. "I need you to scout for them just like you did at Pokemon Tower. We've got to knock one or two of them out fast so I can call the police. Okay?"

Spectre's eye glinted and he immediately floated through the wall, disappearing in an instant. Ash glanced at Gary and Paul. "If you have a Pokemon that can inflict status ailments like sleep or paralysis, get it ready."

"Why's that?" Gary asked.

"So that they can't bother us once we beat them down," Paul informed him somewhat irritably. "What, do you think they'll run away from their own base after you defeat them? They'll probably do whatever they can to keep us busy until backup arrives. We'll have to incapacitate them."

They finally reached the base of the stairs and went quiet, listening for the two grunts they had heard the first time Ash and Paul had snuck in. The three of them jumped however, when Spectre floated around the corner with a gleeful look in his single red eye.

Ash glanced around the corner and smirked when he saw the two Rockets immobilized under the effects of Spectre's Disable. The little ghost really was good at that move.

"Good job, Spectre," Ash praised him. Spectre did a little flip and waited patiently as the three trainers made their way into the large hallway, eyeing the two unmoving grunts lying against a wall.

Gary nudged them with his boot and smirked. "Not bad. That'll probably keep them still until we get out of here."

Ash pulled out his PokeNav and immediately dialed the number for the police, waiting patiently as it rang. After a few short moments, Jenny answered the video phone and looked at him with a somewhat bored expression. "You've reached the Celadon Police Department. How can I help you?"

"You need to send officers to the Game Corner right away," Ash told her. "There's a Team Rocket base underground there."

Jenny arched an eyebrow. "If this is supposed to be some kind of prank kid, it's not a funny one. I can write you up for pulling this."

Ash turned the camera towards the unconscious Rockets. "It's no prank."

"What!" Jenny exclaimed from the video phone as she stared at the Rockets.

Paul stepped into the camera's view. "We're in the base now. We're going to assault it, but we can't arrest any of the Rockets we take out without your help."

"Assault it?! Absolutely not! Get the hell out of there!" She hissed furiously.

"Not an option," Paul replied cooly. "I'd suggest you get your Celadon Gym trainers down here as well. We think there might be Rocket Admins here that are stronger than the average grunt. We'll need some extra firepower to beat them. In the meantime, the three of us will wreck them in any way we can."

Jenny gaped at him. "You kids are crazy! Get out of there right now and—"

Ash hung up. Her rising voice would catch unwanted attention at this rate. He pocketed the PokeNav and nodded. "That went well."

"Dude, she's gonna be more pissed off than a Primeape," Gary muttered. "Suppose she decides to arrest us too?"

"We can worry about that later. Right now, let's give the Rockets what they deserve," Paul told him, spinning around to walk further into the base.

Ash tapped Spectre's skull mask again. "Spectre, I need you to keep scouting. Don't attack anyone, just let us know where they are."

The ghost nodded and disappeared. Ash blinked when he saw Gary wasn't following them and found the boy taking Poke Balls from the two immobilized grunts. He looked at Ash and shrugged. "I'm not about to take my chances and leave them armed. We'll fork 'em over to Jenny when the cops get here."

With that, the two of them followed Paul deeper into the Team Rocket base.

* * *

The first battle they had was two minutes after they immobilized the first grunts. Ash was about to turn a corner when Spectre popped out of the ground and assumed a defensive posture between his trainer and the path ahead, causing Ash to tense and reach for Pyro's Poke Ball. At his sides, Gary and Paul also armed themselves as two Rocket grunts turned the corner and blinked at them with surprise.

"The hell are these kids? Did we get any new recruits, Cassidy?" Queried a man.

The woman shook her head. "Not that I know of. Little boys, what are you doing here?"

"Since you asked nicely, we'll use simple words so you can understand us," Paul sneered, causing the two grunts to glare at him darkly. "We're here to kick your asses."

"Oh? You hear that Butch?" Cassidy grinned maliciously. "We're looking at the three musketeers."

"Trying to be the heroes, eh?" Butch chuckled. "Well, I think you three brats are in need of some…correctional treatment. Let us show you what happens to those that defy-"

He didn't get any further as Spectre suddenly vanished into a shadow and then popped out a second later to pummel Butch right in the face with his skull mask. The Rocket grunt reeled back, dazed and disoriented, with a bloody nose to match. Spectre cackled, but it was only for a second as Cassidy released her Pokemon.

A Houndour and Raticate snarled at them and lunged, but Gary and Paul set loose a huge Geodude (there was no way it wasn't on the cusp of evolution) and Nidorino to counter her. While the battle got under way, Butch recovered and set loose a Mankey, which caused Ash to set Pyro loose.

The Charmeleon just had to take a single look at the Rocket uniforms on Butch and Cassidy to fly into a rage. He roared furiously and charged Mankey, who seemed surprised by the savagery Pyro was displaying. Before the pig monkey could even react, Pyro slashed at it with his claws, launching it right into Butch and bowling him over. The Slash attack did plenty of damage, but it angered Mankey and made it get over its brief surprise. The pig monkey lunged at Pyro and engaged him as the fire lizard breathed tongues of flame and slashed at his enemy violently.

Ash, Paul, and Gary had backed up immediately after releasing their Pokemon, Spectre floating as a guard between them and the battle in case an attack went in their direction. The fight was quick and brutal, but it was obvious that Butch and Cassidy's Pokemon were pretty new to the concept of battle. Pyro defeated Mankey with a vicious Mega Punch that created a crater beneath the pig monkey Pokemon, only half a minute or so into the fight. Geodude weathered Houndour's flames with relative easy and trapped it with Rock Tomb, then bashed a Rock Blast into the canine's head.

Raticate was the nastiest of the bunch since it was the only evolved Pokemon the two grunts had, but even then it was swiftly dispatched by a clean stab from Nidorino's Focus Jab. The rat tried to play possum and attacked Nidorino when the poison-type thought it was down, but Nidorino wasn't easily fooled and finished it with another stab of his horn.

Butch and Cassidy looked stunned at their easy loss, but the boys weren't going to give them the time of day.

"Knock them out," Ash commanded angrily.

Pyro grabbed Cassidy by her arm and threw her over his shoulder to smash the woman into the ground. The force knocked her out instantly. Nidorino ran into Butch's leg to trip him, then Geodude quite simply fell onto the man's back. Needless to say, Ash winced at the brief cracking sound that particular move created. Butch would definitely feel that later.

Gary scowled. "Is that seriously it? If they're all this weak, then this'll be easier than I thought."

"Let's just keep moving," Paul muttered. "I want to crush as many of them as I can before the police get here."

They left Butch and Cassidy unconscious on the ground with their defeated Pokemon. After another minute or so of tense sneaking through the hallway, they saw a door on the right side of the hall. Ash glanced behind him and the other boys nodded, so he crept towards it.

A Rocket grunt was sitting at a computer, but he was snoring loudly on the keyboard. Ash smirked and looked at Spectre. "Disable."

The ghost quickly followed his command with a glowing eye. A faint outline of dark energy surrounded the grunt and Ash noticed with satisfaction that his body stiffened up, still fast asleep.

They moved into the room and shut the door behind them quietly. Paul pushed the grunt away from the desk in his rolling chair and took his Poke Balls away as Gary looked at the computer with interest. "What do you think they've got stored on file in there? King Kong?"

"One way to find out," Paul tapped the spacebar and waited as the dark screen booted up. A box came up requesting a password, which made him sneer. "Password? I've got a _password_ for them."

He pulled out a Poke Ball and released one of the oddest creatures Ash had ever seen. It was comprised of many geometric shapes, with a simple pink and blue body, two legs that could do little more than move up and down slightly, and a straight, pointy tail. It had no mouth and its head was just as pointy and jagged as the rest of its body. Two large, white eyes in the shapes of hexagons with simple pupils in the center completed the Pokemon.

"A Porygon?" Gary stared at it with interest. "This is what you won with your coins?"

"Yeah," Paul confirmed. He snapped his fingers to get Porygon's attention and the strange creature made several sounds that resembled computer beeps. "I haven't introduced myself to you properly yet, but there's not any time for that. I'm your trainer now, Porygon, and I've got a job for you."

Porygon beeped again in what sounded like agreement. Paul pointed at the computer and went on. "I need you to hack this computer. It's storing information for criminals, but we don't know the password. Can you crack it?"

Porygon looked at the computer for a second before floating towards it. The moment it touched the screen, it's body began to dissolve into particulates of data until an image depicting Porygon appeared on the computer desktop.

Ash cocked his head in fascination. "Okay, that's actually pretty neat."

"Porygon, can you do it?" Paul queried. The Porygon image on the screen went to the box requesting a password. It hovered over it for a few seconds, then a string of characters were typed into the bar and entered. Paul smirked as the computer accepted the hacked password, bringing up a screen with a big red "R" and a series of file options. "Good job. Find information about this base."

Porygon's image floated over to a folder and scanned it for a bit before passing to the next one. They waited tensely for a few minutes, aware that any intrusion would have them discovered. Finally, Porygon found something and brought it up on the screen. The boys watched as data about the base, including its layout and description appeared before their eyes.

Ash jabbed instantly at the room in the back of the base that was titled "Laboratory" with a scowl on his face. "We should hit them there and mess up their research. Maybe we can find out more about those special projects the first grunts we saw were talking about."

"That's pretty far down there," Gary admitted as he checked out the layout. "And it's probably guarded better than the front door was. Maybe one of their Admins will be hanging around there."

"Probably. One of the Admins is a lady called Ariana," Ash recalled as memories of Pokemon Tower came back to him. "She's apparently their head researcher. If she's in this base, that's probably the spot."

"Porygon, can you find information about a "Project: Darkwing" or "Project: Origin?" Paul requested.

Porygon searched again for the data his trainer had requested, but after five minutes of searching, it returned to the center of the screen and made a negative sounding beep.

"Well, it was worth a shot," Paul muttered with disappointment. "Porygon, I need you to shut off the security cameras if there are any and then come back. We have to get moving."

The virtual creature beeped again and floated over to the settings on the computer for a few minutes to access the whole system, where it pulled up screens for only five cameras. Ash arched an eyebrow. Team Rocket really was being careless if they were that lax on security. They watched as Porygon shut each of the cameras down by freezing their frames. Hopefully, whoever was supposed to be watching them wouldn't notice the difference.

Porygon began to materialize out of the computer screen shortly after and floated in front of the boys. Paul approached it with an approving nod. "Good work, Porygon. I'm going to recall you now. We'll meet again after this is over."

Porygon beeped again, then Paul recalled his Pokemon. Ash opened the door slightly and peered out into the hall, but fortunately, no one was there.

"Let's go," he muttered.

* * *

Progress was made slowly, but with ease. None of the grunts were expecting an attack and most fell prey to Spectre's Disable. Ash couldn't believe how ridiculously easy this was—these grunts had to be the lowest of the low in Team Rocket's organization. If their Pokemon were anything like Butch and Cassidy's, they wouldn't put up much of a fight anyways.

He may have jinxed them with that thought, because as the boys turned a corner, they found themselves facing six grunts, all of whom looked surprised to see them.

"Intruders?" One of the grunts exclaimed. Then he scowled. "Intruders! Get them!"

Ash unleashed Pikachu in an instant. "Quick Stun!"

The mouse lunged with blinding speed at the clustered group of Rockets and immediately tackled the nearest one to send a jolt of electricity through his body. Pikachu then used the Rocket as a platform to jump at a second enemy, paralyzing her as well.

He was only able to get two of the grunts paralyzed before the other four released eight Pokemon—three Koffing, two Grimer, a Drowzee, and two Machop. Ash called Pikachu to his side and released Sobek to fight so Spectre could float above him. Gary sent out Geodude and a Kadabra, while Paul released an Electabuzz and Cubone.

The group of Rocket Pokemon charged them, seemingly intent on engaging their enemies in a physical brawl. Only Drowzee hung back and began to build up psychic energy for an attack.

"Kadabra, take care of that Drowzee. Shadow Ball until it's unconscious—don't give it an opportunity to attack us," Gary commanded. "Geodude, cover him with Rock Blast and Rollout."

"Target the Machop with Thunder Wave and Thunder Punch, Electabuzz," Paul ordered calmly. "Cubone, go after the Koffing with Bonemerang. If they get too close, use Tomb Break."

"Sobek, use Stone Edge on the Grimer," Ash said quickly. "Don't let them touch you—they're toxic. Pikachu, help out Cubone with Thunderbolt. Try and paralyze those Koffing before they can start spewing poison gas."

Their Pokemon immediately carried out their orders. Kadabra began to levitate and used its spoon as a focal point to create a Shadow Ball, which it fired at Drowzee. Geodude took a stance in front of the psychic-type and waited in case it needed to act as Kadabra's defense. Electabuzz discharged two quick bursts of lightning from its horns to paralyze the Machop and then lunged at them, bashing the weakened fighting-types with electrified fists.

Cubone and Pikachu went straight for the Koffing. Pikachu fired a Thunder Wave that tagged two of the poison-types while Cubone's bone pummeled into the third right between the eyes. While they kept them busy, Sobek smashed his fist into the ground, causing jagged stones to burst out of the ground. The two Grimer were instantly impaled, straight through their gelatinous bodies. It looked brutal, but Grimer were odd Pokemon—they were biologically immortal if their bodies were torn apart. The only way to truly kill them was to burn them into ashes until nothing remained.

Sobek grinned with delight as the two enemies gurgled painfully and slowly began to reform. Whenever one of the Grimer got close to becoming complete again, the crocodilian ripped them apart again with Stone Edge.

The whole battle was over in mere minutes, despite the seemingly confused brawling. The Rockets' Pokemon were not trained like their enemies' were. They were used to overwhelming opponents with numbers—quantity over quality. Even though the Rockets did technically outnumber the boys in this fight, their Pokemon were helpless in the face of seasoned fighters like those belonging to Ash, Gary, and Paul.

When the last Rocket Pokemon was defeated, Ash and Paul quickly ordered Pikachu and Electabuzz to paralyze the remaining grunts. The four men and women were down before they could even comprehend that they'd been bested.

They made to move on, but a yell from behind them made the boys freeze.

Ash's face curled into an ugly scowl as he caught sight of Proton at the head of a huge group of grunts. The Admin was grinning at them darkly. "Oh, you boys are in _trouble_. You should know better than to pick fights that you can't win. I'm going to offer you this once, so listen carefully—surrender, or suffer the consequences."

"Kiss my ass," Paul snarled right back, then shouted to Electabuzz. "Thunder Wave!"

The electric-type did as he ordered instantly, firing a blast of lighting right at Proton. Before the move made contact, however, there was a burst of light and then the ground shook.

Ash's eyes widened as a Rhydon appeared, almost blocking the hallway with its massive bulk. Proton leaned around his behemoth after it absorbed the Thunder Wave harmlessly, still grinning at the boys. "Rhydon, have your way with them. Would you boys prefer your corpses to look like pancakes, or with holes drilled through your bodies?"

Rhydon's horn spun as it growled deeply, shaking the earth. Proton's smirk had vicious delight written all over it. "Ah, some familiar faces. The two little heroes from Mt. Moon, am I right? Didn't I teach you last time that it was unwise to interfere with Team Rocket? As I recall, my Crobat very nearly killed you. No matter, no matter. It would seem I'll have a second chance to have my way with you brats."

Ash grit his teeth. This wasn't a fight they could win—not against Proton's Rhydon, whatever other monsters he had on him, and ten plus grunts. He spun towards Sobek. "Stone Edge! Block the hallway!"

"Geodude, Rock Tomb!" Gary instantly shouted, also recognizing the danger.

Sobek stamped his foot hard on the ground and created spires of jagged stone between them and the Rockets. Geodude mimicked it by simply punching its stone arms through the floor and using its rock-type energy to manipulate rocks into bursting into the hall from below.

"Hammer Arm," was all the boys heard before Rhydon roared enough to make the ground shake. A moment later, pulverized rock went flying everywhere from the behemoth's devastating strike. Ash yelped and dove to the ground as a stone the size of a bowling ball missed his head by mere inches, though he was still pelted by smaller rocks that cut and bruised his skin. He saw Paul hit the ground a second later and Gary yelled in pain.

"OW, dammit!" Gary leaned back against the wall and slid down, clutching his left arm while he hissed in pain. He'd been tagged by one of the larger stones.

Proton snickered. "Give it up, boys! Or else—"

He was cut off by a brilliant flash of white light and a groaning bellow that sounded like rocks grating together. Everyone froze and stared as Gary's Geodude grew in bulk, tripling its size while growing two stubby legs and two extra, burly arms. When the light exploded away, a Graveler smashed its four fists together and bellowed furiously at the Rhydon that had injured its trainer.

When it used Rock Tomb this time, the rock-type created a solid wall of stone that was a huge improvement on the previous barrier. The hallway was filled completely by rock, blockaded until they couldn't even hear Proton's shout of surprise.

Paul got back up quickly. "We have to go. That wall isn't going to hold back his Rhydon for long."

"You okay?" Ash went over to Gary to check on the injured trainer.

Gary cursed again. "I think my wrist might be broken. It's definitely cracked."

Despite the pain, he stood up and grinned at his Graveler. "You just saved our asses, Graveler. Thanks."

Graveler nodded silently, keeping an eye on the wall of rock just in case it was broken again by Rhydon. After recalling most of their Pokmeon, they got moving again as quickly as possible, though they were hampered by Gary's injury. According to the information that Porygon had given them, they were almost at the furthest point in the base. There was still a chance they could make it to the laboratory and damage Team Rocket further before the police arrived.

* * *

They should have known that the lab wouldn't be a nice place, especially given that Team Rocket were the ones running it. They were never going to find anything they would like down there. But none of the boys were prepared for what they _did_ find.

Massive test tubes going from the ceiling to the floor lined the room, containing the bodies of Pokemon that were either in stasis or, as they noticed with a rising sense of sickness, corpses. Each tube was labeled, describing if the individual inside was alive or dead, and what it was the Rockets were testing on them. There were holding cages as well in the back, keeping inside of them the most miserable creatures the boys had ever seen.

They saw bird Pokemon with their beaks blunted from trying to escape so much, Rattata and Raticate that couldn't close their own mouths because they had nothing to chew on, so their ever-growing teeth got too large. Groups of Nidoran were huddled together and some of them looked like they might have been feeding on a deceased member of their own kin.

There were more exotic species as well. Ash caught sight of a Scyther that was missing one of its huge blade-like arms, though it was regrowing in some way that was unknown to him. There was a Dratini that was smashing its head into the cell with a fury that had no place in the normally gentle dragon type. The biggest shock was an Aerodactyl that looked as if it hadn't been created properly—its wings were far too small and the teeth were so misaligned that they dug into its own skin.

In short, they all looked awful. The Pokemon varied from ones that appeared to have just arrived in the lab, to ones that looked like they hadn't eaten in weeks. The whole room made Ash sick.

"Son of a…" Gary trailed off as he stared around with wide, horrified eyes.

Paul had his fists clenched until his knuckles went white, fury pulsing through his eyes. He glanced around until he spotted something that made him freeze. "What is that?"

Ash turned to stare at whatever had Paul's attention and blinked at a strange form floating in a test tube. Whatever it was, it was only half-created from the head down, though bubbles of particle matter seemed to be attaching to the creature slowly as they watched. He couldn't even tell what it was supposed to _be_. It had a vaguely feline face, but with an almost anorexic humanoid body shape that was covered in thin, pale gray fur. There was a warning label on the front that he took notice of and read aloud for the others.

"Project: Origin Subject 003," Ash started, pausing as he realized that this might be more important than they thought. He continued to read eagerly. "Warning: Do not manage without consent of Team Rocket Head Scientist Ariana. Subject is still under development and easily damaged. Currently undergoing genetic reconstruction using material harvested from Hoenn's Faraway Island and Ditto cells."

There was a computer by the test tube, so Paul released Porygon again to hack it. In moments, the virtual Pokemon was back in the Rockets' system and drawing out as much information as it could, though it was far slower and less effective this time. Apparently, this creature's identity and information was worth added cybernetic protection.

Paul was annoyed when all Porygon could get from the database was that the creature was based on a psychic Pokemon. "Well, it's no good to Team Rocket right now. The thing's only half-baked."

"For now."

They whirled around towards the door they had come through to find a red-haired woman in a white uniform scowling at them. Beside her were two Pokemon—a Magneton and an Arbok. "Little boys should know better than to poke their noses where they don't belong."

"Ariana, right?" Ash glared at her. "Cynthia beat you in Pokemon Tower."

The woman's scowl turned deadly. "You're that little brat who ruined my plan to capture Spiritomb. I'm going to enjoy crushing you. You'll wish Proton had gotten his hands on you first."

She looked from him to Gary, and then Paul and his Porygon as the boy recalled it. The sight of the virtual Pokemon made her even angrier. "That's why our security systems went down? You've got some nerve."

Ash set loose Pyro, Sobek, and Pikachu immediately, while Spectre hovered over his head. Paul released his Grotle, Electabuzz, and Nidorino beside him, though Gary hung back because of his injury and let Wartortle, Graveler, and Kadabra act as guards.

Ariana sneered. "Going to pick a fight you can't win?"

"Ten against two?" Paul arched his eyebrow. "I think the odds are in our favor."

"Ten against four," another voice interrupted.

Proton had come into the lab through another entrance with a Rhydon and a small Pokemon with sharp claws that Ash didn't recognize. He looked furious. "There are police in the base. These brats set us up. They'll probably get through all those worthless grunts in a few minutes."

"You little shits," Ariana glared at them. "You're going to pay in blood for this."

"Now, now, there's no need for that!"

The boys froze as a third Rocket appeared behind them, seemingly from nowhere. The man had a confident smirk on his face right below a purple mohawk. "Team Rocket Admin Petrel, at your service. Pipe down, will you? Why fight when we can be productive about this? You three boys have talent to get this far into our base—that or incredible luck. Either one would be a great asset to our cause! How about it? I'm offering to you a chance to join Team Rocket and become filthy rich!"

Ash glared at him darkly. "Never."

"If that's a joke, I forgot to laugh," Gary sneered in response. Paul said nothing, simply opting to ignore Petrel and glare at Proton while the man scowled right back. They were both itching for a fight.

Petrel shrugged. "Very well. I hate to do this, but press-ganging is possible for you boys. You aren't so strong yet that you can resist three Admins at once. Our leader provides to us powerful Pokemon, you know."

The Rhydon growling at Proton's side was testament to that, but Petrel released two more Pokemon that Ash identified as a Haunter and a Murkrow. The Admin smirked again. "Surrender now. We're only using two Pokemon each. Do you actually think this is all we have on us? Don't make us set the _really_ bloodthirsty monsters on you, little boys."

Ash glanced at Paul and Gary, who both nodded. He didn't bother replying to Petrel's threat. Instead, the boys immediately went on the assault.

"Flamethrower, Crunch, Quick Stun, Shadow Ball!" Ash roared.

"Razor Leaf, Thunder Punch, Focus Jab!" Paul commanded.

"Water Pulse, Rock Blast, Psybeam!" Gary shouted.

Their Pokemon unleashed the maelstrom of attacks instantly, blasting at the enemy Rockets and their Pokemon. The Admins were wary of begin struck by a stray move and backed off, but they didn't even respond as their Pokemon counterattacked.

Ariana's Magneton began to fire bursts of lightning to counterattack any ranged moves like Kadabra's Psybeam, while her Arbok lunged to intercept Sobek's Crunch with its own huge fangs. Petrel's Haunter began to engage Spectre, cackling while it easily evaded the slower ghost's attacks. His Murkrow did little more than guard its master, though it occasionally dove in to attack if it saw an opportunity. Wartortle spat Ice Beams at the bird whenever he could to keep it at bay.

Proton's Pokemon were by far the most dangerous. Rhydon was fighting Pyro, Graveler, and Nidorino all at once and still didn't even look like it was breaking a sweat. It was slow, but each and every one of its moves were ridiculously powerful and would do cataclysmic damage if they made contact.

The odd dark-type he had was fighting Pikachu and Grotle with ease. Ash had no idea it would be so blindingly fast, but it made Pikachu look like he was moving in slow motion. He could barely track the thing with his eyes and it seemed to be toying with its enemies in a sadistic kind of cat and mouse game. It would rush in, slash at them to make a small cut, then dart away before the Pokemon had any idea what had hit them.

Ash heard a roar of fury and froze when he saw Sobek in Arbok's coils. The serpent made to bite his Pokemon, but hissed when Wartortle hurled a Water Pulse into its face, making it dizzy. Sobek snapped his jaws into Arbok and began to rip his head back and forth, cutting deep into its flesh while the confused snake writhed in pain.

Kadabra was in a stalemate with Magneton, but the electric-type was getting the upper hand with its greater strength. Petrel's Haunter wasn't even really fighting, just taunting Spectre with its speed and occasional scratches of its ghostly claws. If it started to battle seriously, Ash had no doubt that it overwhelm Spectre. He didn't even want to imagine Rhydon getting serious—the stone behemoth was just swatting at their Pokemon as if they were bothersome flies. It hadn't hit any of them yet, but it seemed to be getting bored and impatient.

The biggest threat right now was the dark-type that Proton had released. It was done playing. The creature was darting around and spitting blasts of icy wind at Pikachu and Grotle, then moved in to slash with its claws—this time for real. Pikachu went flying after taking what Ash could only assume was an Ice Punch, then the creature lunged at Grotle and the grass-type let out a shriek of pain.

Ash stared in horror as Grotle fell to his knees, front right leg badly lacerated from the incredibly sharp claws. Paul swore and recalled his starter immediately. That was a bad injury that needed treatment immediately.

Proton sneered. "One down, Weavile. Finish off that mouse. It's beginning to annoy me."

The dark-type snickered evilly and locked its gaze on Pikachu, claws flexing as it prepared to rend its opponent at its leisure. Ash gritted his teeth. This was quickly becoming very one-sided. The Rocket Pokemon were beginning to get serious and started to beat their opponents senseless. The only way they would have a shot at victory was if they took their enemies by surprise.

They needed a distraction, and Ash had only one idea.

"Sobek, destroy that test tube with Stone Edge!" Ash shouted desperately, pointing at the creature that was so important to their enemy.

The Rocket's eyes widened, but none of them had expected the move, so they could only watch as Sobek glared at the tube and is inhabitant, then smashed his fist into the ground. They stared, horrified, as a jagged blade of solid rock punched through the glass, fluid, and straight into the half-formed creature. Its body jerked from the impact and began to dissolve as the liquid in the tube began to leak out of the glass.

"You fucking brat!" Ariana screamed in rage. "Kill him!"

Weavile rushed Ash with blurring speed when Proton repeated Ariana's order and brandished its claws, ready to tear the boy apart. Ash could do nothing—it was too fast for him to avoid, even if he tried to dive out of the way. He brought his arms up in a vain attempt to defend himself—

There was a yellow blur, a flash of claws, and then the gut-wrenching sound of flesh being torn. Ash saw blood spray across the ground with wide, horrified eyes as Pikachu slumped to the ground in front of him and went still.

He fell to the ground beside the electric mouse, vaguely aware of someone screaming. Ash felt like he was in a daze, a bad dream that he couldn't control. But there was no faking the warm liquid flowing onto his hands as it left Pikachu's limp body.

A shudder went through the ground that made his head jerk up. Ash froze as Rhydon—now done fooling about—grabbed Pyro and smashed the Charmeleon into the ground with crushing force. Pyro was stunned and trapped by the raw power of his enemy, and could do nothing as it raised its other fist to crush his skull—

_"Frenzy Plant!"_

The whole room shook as a dozen thick, thorny vines exploded from the ground beneath Rhydon and drilled right into its body. The attack forced Rhydon to release its prey and launched the behemoth into the air to smash it against the ceiling, then curved and whipped it in the back to crush it into the ground. When the dust cleared, Rhydon was unconscious, its stone hide cracked from the violent attack.

Everyone froze in surprise, but spun toward the door to find newcomers—a furious Erika, a scowling Officer Jenny, and Sabrina, as calm and stoic as ever. Beside them was the biggest Venusaur Ash had ever seen, an Alakazam, and an Arcanine. Why the psychic-type expert was here, Ash had no idea, but he couldn't bother to think about it much. Pikachu was badly hurt and the Admins were still—

He blinked. The Admins were gone. He was pretty sure he'd only taken his eyes off of them for a few seconds…

Ash looked down at Pikachu and felt his mind go blank. The normally yellow electric mouse had turned almost completely _red_. He didn't know what to do.

"Ash."

He felt someone lift his chin and found Erika there, kneeling in front of him with concern written all over her face. "Recall Pikachu now, Ash. It's bleeding out."

Ash froze and frantically grabbed for Pikachu's Poke Ball, but he fumbled and almost dropped it. He was shaking—when did he start shaking? His arm was steadied by a gentle hand. Erika guided him to recall the badly injured electric-type and then took the Poke Ball from him. She smiled at him reassuringly. "We'll get Pikachu to the Pokemon Center immediately, okay? Are you injured?"

He shook his head and didn't respond when Erika lifted his chin again to look into his eyes. She frowned and glanced back at Sabrina. "He's in shock. I'll stay here and do what I can for him. Can you get their Pokemon to Joy?"

"Alakazam will see to that," Sabrina replied. Her eyes flashed a menacing red. "Jenny and I have Rockets to interrogate. The Admins escaped via a psychic-type whose presence I was not aware of. I must find out its identity."

Erika nodded. "Very well."

Ash couldn't do anything. The next thing he knew, Erika had him wrapped in her arms and he breathed in something sweet that made him feel so sleepy…

* * *

When he woke up, he was no longer in the Rocket Hideout. Instead, he was lying in his bed at the Pokemon Center. Ash blinked and sat up slowly. Had that all been just a horrible dream?

"Ash."

He jerked his head to the side. He hadn't even noticed Erika sitting next to his bed. Ash frowned at her as she watched him carefully. "How do you feel?"

"I…" Ash looked away. "I didn't just dream all of that in the Rocket Hideout, did I?"

Erika shook her head. "I'm afraid not."

"Then Pikachu…" He swallowed hard.

"He's alive," Erika took his hand and squeezed it reassuringly. "It was close, but Nurse Joy got to him in time. She's been authorized to use Ditto cells for the healing. Your Charmeleon and Krokorok were injured as well, but they're going to be okay."

Ash felt his eyes sting and brought up a hand to cover them. He frowned when she made no mention of the other member of his team that had been fighting. "What about Spectre? My Duskull?"

"Spectre is alright. His injuries were mostly superficial—the Haunter was just toying with him. The other members of your team were the ones that really took the most damage."

He bit his lip, but eventually nodded. Erika patted his cheek. "You three aren't in trouble for what you did. Jenny thought that the injuries you three sustained and the damage done to your Pokemon was punishment enough. But do not try to engage Team Rocket again. You should have known better after Mt. Moon and Pokemon Tower, but they are not enemies that children can fight. You aren't nearly strong enough for that, nor is it your duty."

"We just wanted to help," Ash mumbled. "We couldn't just sit back and do nothing…"

"And you have. You found a Rocket Base and played a huge part in dismantling it," she replied. "But it was foolish of you to attack them on your own. There were _three_ Admins in that base. Each one is Gym Leader class or higher—and I mean when a Gym Leader uses their _real_ team. You saw my Venusaur, yes?"

Ash nodded, so Erika continued. "He is my first partner, and my most powerful. Not even your entire team would stand a chance against him. That is what the Rocket Admins are, especially Proton, who is their military commander."

He swallowed hard. When she said it like that, it made their whole invasion plan sound like a suicide mission.

"Do you understand?" Erika murmured. "Never go seeking out Team Rocket ever again. Do not engage them unless it is life and death. That is not your fight."

Ash bowed his head. She stood up and smiled. "Let's go see Pikachu, okay? Nurse Joy needs to talk to you about him, anyways."

* * *

"Mr. Ketchum. I'm glad to see you're alright," Joy smiled at him, though she looked tired. She sat him and Erika down at an empty table in the Pokemon Center and faced the boy steadily. "I assume you're here to talk about your Pikachu?"

"Yes, ma'am," Ash replied.

Joy's smile wavered. "Well…I'm going to be blunt with you, Ash. He's got a long recovery ahead of him. Weavile's claws didn't just cause massive blood loss, they ruptured his electrical organs. As of right now, he can't use any electric attacks."

He felt his heart rise into his throat. "What?"

"An electric-type Pokemon has special organs in their bodies that generate their power," Joy explained. "If these organs are damaged, they can hinder or cripple an electric-type's ability to use electric attacks."

Ash's eyes widened in horror. "Are you saying he won't ever be able to use electricity again?"

"Not necessarily. He can recover from this," she assured him. "But it's going to be a lengthy recovery that will require specialized rehabilitation. If he isn't trained to use electricity again correctly, it can and will severely hinder his growth. I can't give him that treatment, but there are a few people who can."

"Like who?" Ash demanded. He'd do anything to make sure Pikachu healed properly.

"Who else? Me!"

He wasn't sure if he should've even been surprised when the massive form of Lt. Surge walked into the room.

"How did you get here?" Ash asked.

"Sabrina's Alakazam teleported me here once Joy told her about your mouse a little while ago," Surge suddenly grinned rather nastily. "Frankly, I mostly came here just to interrogate some Rockets. Making bastards like them squeal is something I used to do for a living."

"Language, Lieutenant," Joy said sternly, casting a glare at him. "He's only a child, and he was in shock just twelve hours ago."

"Apologies, miss," Surge dipped his head to her, then looked at Ash. "I offered my help because Joy asked, but also because I told you not long ago that your mouse had the potential to match my Raichu once it grew up and evolved. I've got no intention of letting you get out of that fight. I've rehabilitated electric-types that suffered injuries like this in the Cipher Wars. I can take care of your mouse, but it's going to be a month or two until he's ready to start training with you again."

Ash swallowed. Pikachu was the first Pokemon he had ever captured. Leaving him for _months_ sounded crazy. But crazier was the idea of Pikachu never being able to fight again. Without his electricity, he'd be helpless. All their training to master Volt Tackle and the other electric attacks would be for nothing.

"Okay," Ash managed. "I'm going to miss him, but I just want Pikachu to be alright."

Surge thumped his shoulder with one of his massive hands and nodded firmly. "He's in good hands, kiddo. Ditto cells are practically miracle workers for injuries like this. Modern medicine's come a long way since the Cipher Wars. That was a shit storm."

_"Lieutenant,"_ Joy scowled menacingly.

He just grinned widely and turned to walk away, calling over his shoulder. "See ya, kiddo. Don't go attacking Rockets again without me! I hate missing out on the fun!"

As Surge disappeared (probably to give the Rocket grunts that had been captured absolute hell) Joy scowled. "I don't know how my sister deals with that man. He's so abrasive!"

"You're just too used to dealing with me," Erika smiled at her with amusement.

Ash felt his eyes getting heavy and jerked his head awake when the Celadon Gym Leader patted his shoulder to keep him awake. "Go back to bed. Rest for now," Erika told him. "Meet with your friends. We will tell you if anything changes."

He just nodded blearily and made his way back to his room in the Pokemon Center after thanking them all. All he could really do now was rest.

Besides, his head felt like it was going to explode after all of this.

* * *

Ash woke up to a loud knock on his door. He rose with a feeling of deja vu and arched an eyebrow when he found Paul and Gary waiting for him outside—though Gary had a cast around his wrist and Paul looked like he hadn't slept a wink.

He leaned against the doorway and rubbed his eyes. "If you're trying to drag me into another arcade, I think I've played enough games to last a year."

Gary cracked a smile. "Glad to see you've still got a sense of humor. I got worried after I heard about Pikachu. But he's going to be okay, right?"

Ash scratched the back of his head. "He's got a long way to go, but yeah. What about you guys?"

"My team got away mostly unharmed," Gary shrugged. "I got hurt the worst out of all of them."

He looked at Paul, who shook his head with exhausted eyes. "The tendons in Grotle's leg were severed by Weavile's claws. Joy was working on him throughout the night to make sure he wouldn't be crippled for the rest of his life. She finished an hour ago."

"And now you need to go to sleep," Gary used his good hand to pat the other boy on the shoulder. "Hit the hay, dude. Everyone's alright now."

Paul nodded sleepily and stumbled off, probably to sleep through the rest of the day. Ash didn't blame him. He looked back at Gary, who shrugged. "So…I guess we're not allowed to mess with Rockets anymore."

"Guess not. Erika told me about that last night," he replied.

"You got lucky. Jenny blew a fuse on us," Gary shuddered at the horrific memory. "Women are scary as hell when they get mad."

Ash snorted. His mother was the same way. "Yeah, they are."

"Anyways, my team is all healed up and I got the all clear, so I'm leaving," he told Ash. "I think I'll head back to Cerulean City for a bit. There's a Power Plant to the east of there where I think I can catch an electric-type. It's an easier road than going south to Fuchsia."

"Are you going to board the St. Anne when it gets into port?" Ash asked. "When is that, anyways?"

"Almost two months from now," Gary pulled out his Pokedex and smirked. "Ship comes in halfway through July. It's June 1st today. I'll be there. I worked hard to kick Surge's ass and frankly, I want a shot at those tournament prizes."

Ash grinned back. "Not if I beat you to them."

"We'll see about that," Gary replied confidently. He turned and held up a hand in farewell. "See ya later, Ashy boy."

"See you," Ash called after him. He then closed the door and took a breath. He had a few things to do before retrieving his Pokemon from Nurse Joy. Namely, take a shower.

* * *

"Here you go," Joy gave Ash his Poke Balls—only five, he realized with a sinking heart. Pikachu was still being monitored under the watchful eye of her Chansey, and he wasn't allowed any visitors.

"Thank you," Ash replied gratefully. He set his companions on his belt and made to leave, but Joy stopped him for a brief moment.

She smiled at him. "Time heals all wounds, Ash. Even if things look bad right now, life has a way of getting better. Just be patient."

He nodded silently. It wasn't much comfort right now, but she had tried, and he was grateful for it. The only thing he could do now was get back to traveling and get stronger—so strong that nothing like this would ever happen to his team again. Ash clenched his fist tightly.

Never again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a reminder that I'm mostly updating every Thursday.
> 
> Here are the teams for our main trainers.
> 
> Ash Ketchum
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Pyro (Male Charmeleon)
> 
> Sobek (Male Krokorok)
> 
> Eevee (Female)
> 
> Douse (Male Poliwhirl)
> 
> Spectre (Male Duskull)
> 
> In Recovery:
> 
> Pikachu (Male)
> 
> /
> 
> Gary Oak
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Wartortle (Male)
> 
> Graveler (Male)
> 
> Kadabra (Male)
> 
> Pidgeotto (Male)
> 
> Nidorina (Female)
> 
> ? (From Game Corner)
> 
> At Oak's Lab:
> 
> Raticate (Female)
> 
> Bellsprout (Female)
> 
> Machop (Male)
> 
> Growlithe (Male)
> 
> Krabby (Male)
> 
> Meowth (Male)
> 
> /
> 
> Paul Blackstone
> 
> On-hand:
> 
> Grotle (Male)
> 
> Electabuzz (Male)
> 
> Nidorino (Male)
> 
> Tentacruel (Female)
> 
> Porygon

**Author's Note:**

> Right, so this is a story I've decided to migrate over from ffnet over here to AO3, but I'll be doing a major overhaul on the story from ffnet because I botched it fairly badly as time went on. So this is where I'll post all the updated chapters one-by-one, although they'll also be found on ffnet. 
> 
> Anyways, bear with me! This is a big project!


End file.
